A-Z Lambo Whump
by daisysakura
Summary: Lambo doesn't have it easy. He seems to attract trouble everywhere he goes and I've put some of them in alphabetical order for you to enjoy. Our favorite little cow will suffer but his family will be there to make him all better. Please read and review my humble story! Rated T for Mafia business and language.
1. A is for Anxiety

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

I'm finally about done with the next chapter of True Strength. My mind had gone completely blank but it's starting to gain some color. I will have that up in a few days once a few corrections are made. Thank you all for your lovely reviews and words of encouragement. They truly mean the world to me!

I've read a few A-Z stories and decided to do my own with Lambo as the main character. Obviously. Lol, most will be hurt/comfort but I think I might try my hand at humor again. Maybe! Not sure, yet but we'll see.

I used Grammarly to go over this but I'm sure I left some mistakes along the way. As always, I'll go over it with better eyes at a later time. If you see something that needs major correcting, please let me know.

Disclaimer: I do not own these great characters!

Without further ado, A is for…

* * *

As soon as Lambo has taken off his shoes, he runs up the stairs to his room; shouting a quick greeting to his mama and an excuse of needing to do his homework. Once inside, he makes sure his door is locked, -not that it would keep his brothers out if they wanted in- and goes to sit on his bed.

With a nervous gulp, he clicks on the email app on his phone and pulls up the newest message. The email address is a name he knows all too well, one he had hoped never to see again. It had really surprised him when he'd felt his phone vibrate and had seen the alert; he'd been a nervous wreck for the rest of the day.

He has his finger above the email, wondering if he should open it but then chastises himself; it's not like it will explode when he opens it. He pauses then shakes his head. Nah, as advanced as the Bovino weapons are, there is no way they can implement bombs into emails…not yet at least.

He opens the email and immediately knows he won't like what he is about to read just by the greeting.

 _Dear Little Lambo,_

Lambo tightens his grip on his phone, remembering all the times his cousin had called him that just before inflecting some kind of pain. Timo is six years older but had been acting like an adult ever since Lambo could remember. When Lambo had been kicked out of their Famiglia, effectively eliminating him as heir, Timo had taken his place.

The eleven-year-old didn't care about that anymore, though, not since having found his place with the Vongola. But it is a constant reminder of how easily he'd been replaced by his own family and it stung a bit to this day. Lambo shakes his head not wanting to get too deep into those thoughts and continues to read.

 _You might not remember me but my name is Timo Bovino, the future head of the Bovino Famiglia. I hope everything is going well for you with Vongola. Although I'm yet to understand why they keep someone as useless as you around, I hope you aren't kicked out anytime soon._

 _I won't waste my time talking about stupid things so I will get to the reason I'm contacting you. In a few months' time, I will be celebrating my 18_ _th_ _birthday which means there will be quite a celebration planned. Many families will be invited, as will Vongola, in order to strengthen our alliance. We have just about everything ready but I'm afraid I need something from you."_

Lambo tries to control his trembling but it is futile. He knows something bad is coming and he knows he won't be able to escape from whatever it is.

 _Six years ago, you took something that belongs to me and I need it back. When you went off on that ridiculous mission to kill Reborn, you took my Bovino brooch. You know which one, the one that only the heir can wear. I know you still have it and I want it back._

Timo is right, Lambo did still have it. Even after six years, he still couldn't throw away that stupid brooch; the only thing left connecting him to the Bovinos. He looks towards his closet where he knows the brooch is located, resting inside a small box. The pre-teen knows he should have gotten rid of it a long time ago but he'd somehow still held on to the hope that his family would want to talk to him someday. The brooch was the only proof he had of ever having mattered; of being somebody important.

While it had been passed down a couple of generations, they could easily have a jeweler make another one; there was no need to take his. If Lambo could be replaced as easily as he'd been then a brooch shouldn't be a problem.

 _As you know, important things cannot be easily replaced._

 _Ouch,_ Lambo thinks as his heart aches. Apparently, the brooch held more value than he did in their eyes. He doesn't think it should hurt but somehow it does. It doesn't matter how much distress they caused him or how little they thought of him but he had still been a part of their family.

 _I will be visiting some associates in Namimori next Saturday and I want you to meet me at the park afterward around noon; you know which park. I expect you to bring my brooch without fail. If you are late or do not show up, I will be extremely disappointed, Little Lambo._

The email ends with an electronic signature followed by the Bovino emblem. At this point, Lambo is a shaking mess. He'd been ordered by the Bovino heir to deliver the brooch in person. Lambo will have to see his cousin once more and he's terrified.

The last time he saw Timo, the boy had laughed with his friends as Lambo had prepared to leave on his suicide mission. They had pushed him around, taunted and…they had caused his heart to ache. Nothing good ever happened whenever Timo was around and Lambo knew this time wouldn't be any different.

For a split second Lambo wonders what would happen if he doesn't show up but immediately dismisses the idea. Timo will find him and make him suffer even more if he doesn't deliver the brooch as ordered. He could always ask Tsuna to go with him but that would make him look incredibly weak. No, he had to do this himself.

He stands up and walks to his closet to retrieve the object of his misery. Lambo sets up his stepping stool and climbs up to reach behind some blankets. He slowly pulls out the small box and flips open the lid, revealing a silky blue scarf. After a slight hesitation, he carefully removes the scarf and holds his breath as the shiny gold brooch appears; still in perfect condition.

It has been three years since he'd last held it; gold brooch with the Bovino emblem. It was weird how such a small thing could cause him so much discomfort.

He is about to step down when a loud laugh surprises him; startling him so bad, he drops the brooch with a gasp as he loses his balance. He quickly reaches for something to grab unto but only accomplishes in grabbing the blankets to stop from falling. He grabs hold simply to take them along to the floor.

"Oomf!"

"Lambo, are you ok?"

He tries to calm down but his nerves are on the fritz. The young Lightning Guardian quickly picks himself up before answering, "Fine!"

He hopes that will be enough to send Tsuna on his way but of course, Tsuna definitely heard the slight crash.

"Great; can you open the door, please?"

Even though it is phrased as a question, Lambo knows he doesn't have much of a say so he takes a couple of deep breaths as he makes his way to the door. He closes his eyes and takes one last and very deep breath before opening the door.

Tsuna takes one look at his brother and knows something is wrong. Lambo looks pale. His teary eyes and not to mention the fear the Tenth can see let him know his guardian needs help. Not that Lambo will willingly ask for help, he rarely does.

One glance around his room and it's obvious what caused the loud bang. "Are you hurt?"

Not yet, Lambo wants to say but instead shakes his head. "I fell off the stepping stool but I'm ok."

Tsuna shakes his head fondly as he makes his way to the closet to help with the fallen blankets.

"I came up to ask if you wanted to go get dinner with us. Hayato's in the mood for Italian but Takeshi wants Mexican. What do you feel like having tonight?"

"I'm not really hungry. I figured I'd do my homework and go to sleep early."

Tsuna stops folding the blanket and gives Lambo a concerned stare. "Did you hit your head when you fell? You know there are no classes tomorrow, right? Maybe I should take you to the doctor to get examined."

Lambo rolls his eyes but a small smile graces his face, "I'm fine, Tsuna-nii; just tired."

Tsuna is about to say something else when he spots something shiny from the corner of his eye. He turns and sees the brooch with the Bovino emblem next to the closet door. Lambo notices where he's staring and immediately picks it up, hiding it behind his back with a guilty look. Tsuna can see how uncomfortable his brother is and completely misunderstands.

"Lambo, you don't have to hide that. I understand they're still your family, we won't be upset if you want to keep something from them."

Those words only make the eleven-year-old feel worse for keeping the email a secret. He doesn't say anything, instead, continues to stare at his feet.

When Lambo doesn't say anything, Tsuna sighs, "I'll save you a plate for when you get hungry, ok?"

Lambo nods, still not looking up at his brother. Tsuna smiles as he puts the blankets back in the closet. He picks up the small box and puts the scarf inside then hands it to Lambo.

"Make sure to get some rest, little brother." Tsuna heads to the door then looks back, "You know you can tell me if there's anything bothering you, right?"

Lambo nods, knowing he can't keep his feelings a secret from his big brother. "Thanks, Tsuna-nii."

Once Tsuna leaves, Lambo lets out a relieved sigh. Tsuna isn't stupid, Lambo knows his older brother suspects something is off but he's better off not knowing _exactly_ what. There's no telling what he or his other brothers would do if they found out he had received a threatening email from his cousin. As much as he would love for Timo to get a taste of his own medicine, the last thing he wants is to ruin an already strained alliance.

* * *

The week after receiving the email, Lambo is a complete mess. His anxiety is so off the charts, his brothers worry Lambo is going to have a heart attack at any moment.

They try asking what's wrong to which Lambo denies anything is. He insists he's nervous about the upcoming test which only causes Reborn to tutor him extra hard.

After the test, which he passed with almost a perfect score, he blames his anxiety on some bullies. Lambo almost feels guilty about some of his classmates getting the scare of their lives, compliments of angry brothers, but they'd been annoying him anyway so it's well deserved.

On Friday, Lambo can't sleep at all. He's beyond paranoid, thinking Timo is right outside his house, waiting for him to come out. The past few days, he barely ate since he wasn't keeping anything down. He was hungry, tired and scared for his life; couldn't Timo just get it over with?

His brothers tried to get to the bottom of things but Lambo avoided them like the plague. When they had cornered him the day before, Lambo had passed out from pure exhaustion. When he'd woken up, he'd kept them at bay with the excuse that he'd been feeling sick.

Mama had been so worried, she had tried taking him to the hospital immediately but Lambo had managed to convince her otherwise. Not completely convinced, Mama had made him swear to let her know if he felt worse.

Lambo couldn't wait to get Saturday over with. His nerves couldn't take much more of this torture. He wondered if this was why Timo had given him a week, to completely freak him out.

Saturday finally arrives. Lambo skips breakfast with the excuse of needing to go to the library to work on a project for school, which he's sure nobody believes but is glad when he doesn't get asked any questions.

He spends his morning throwing up in a bathroom at the local bakery. His nerves are going haywire and he can't stop himself from trembling. Even after six years, his cousin still has the power to make him sick to his stomach from fear. He subconsciously rubs his left wrist; the one Timo had fractured when he'd only been three.

He takes a tentative sip of his hot chocolate while looking at the clock. If he expects to be at the park early, he needs to leave now but he can't make his legs move. No, he's lying. His legs are actually shaking nonstop. After some more inner-struggling, he manages to stand up and walk out the bakery with a slight wave to the lady behind the counter.

He makes it to the meeting spot with fifteen minutes to spare and sits down on a bench facing the lake. It looks so calm unlike everything going on in his head.

He knows this is the park Timo was talking about without having needed to ask because this is the spot where Lambo last saw his father two years ago. This is probably the only park Lambo would never willingly visit as Bovinos tend to frequent it; Timo knows Lambo would rather be anywhere else than here which makes the young Lightning Guardian resent his cousin a bit more.

Lambo is breathing fast, his hands shaking as anxiety fills him once more. The Vongola teen is terrified of what's to come but maybe it won't be so bad? Perhaps Timo will just ask for the brooch and leave. Or perhaps Timo won't show up at all and say Lambo can keep it! Perhaps, Lambo groans, he should have brought Tsuna after all.

The Lightning Guardian sighs, he'll be seeing his cousin for the first time in six years; his psychotic cousin. Lambo can remember each time he'd been hurt at Timo's hands, some he wishes he could forget completely.

"Little Lambo, there you are."

Lambo tenses and hopes to all that's holy that this doesn't hurt as much as he thinks it will. He slowly stands up and looks to the direction where the voice came from and instantly feels his blood go cold. He immediately recognizes his cousin; dressed in a fancy suit along with a cocky grin but that's not what scares him; it's not even the bodyguards following behind. No, it's the woman standing next to Timo that sends his heart into a beating frenzy.

"Mother…" He whispers with wide eyes. The woman who'd brought him into this world is as beautiful as ever; wearing a business suit and looking as intimidating as ever, her long black hair swaying smoothly with the slight breeze.

"Hey, Little Lambo, it's been a long time." Timo greets with a smile which raises all sorts of red flags within Lambo. His cousin steps forward and pulls the smaller boy into a hug which causes Lambo to completely tense.

The Bovino plants a kiss on his cheek and whispers into his ear, "Still ugly, I see."

It takes all his strength not to say anything in return, knowing he'll just suffer more for it. He looks to where his mother is standing with a bored expression; looking everywhere but at him. He knows she won't make the first move so he does.

"Hello, Mother. How, um," He gulps. "How are you?"

Lady Bovino pulls out her cell phone and ignores him before turning to Timo, "Are you almost finished, my dear nephew? I sure detest this foul odor; you know how this stench makes me sick."

Lambo feels his heart sink even though he knew this is what would happen. Timo laughs, "Almost, Auntie," He turns to Lambo, "My brooch?"

Lambo slowly pulls out the golden brooch and stares at it for a second before hesitantly handing it to his cousin.

"Ah, it's been such a long time since I last saw you." He states with glee while giving the brooch an examination.

Lambo looks back to his mother, hoping she'll at least give him a quick glance but the woman seems to be completely unaware of his presence.

 _Just like old times…_

After a minute or so, Lady Bovino seems to grow tired of the staring because she turns to glare at the small boy, "What are you staring at, you filth?"

Lambo flinches as if physically struck and shakes his head, "I'm sorry, it's just been a long time since I last saw you and-"

"Not long enough. I honestly thought you'd be dead by now."

Well, that hurt. Lambo can already feel his eyes begin to water which causes Timo to laugh.

"You really haven't changed, have you? Poor Little Lambo, still a crybaby."

"I'm not a crybaby!"

Timo narrows his eyes, "Did you raise your voice at me?"

"Learn your place, you ingrate!"

"Why do you hate me so much?" Lambo asks with a broken heart before he can stop himself. His eyes widen, covering his mouth but it's too late. Lady Bovino is enraged; her eyes blazing with hatred.

Lambo doesn't move when she approaches him, doesn't cry out when the familiar slap almost makes his head spin. He silently puts his hand on his cheek and looks back at her with fearful eyes.

"Because you were born to me," She states with deadly calm. "You were born and never reached the potential we had expected from you. When you failed your mission with Reborn, I had an assassin ready to take you out, you know. You would have been dead if you hadn't gotten involved with Vongola."

Lambo stares, not believing what he's hearing. His own mother wanted him…dead?

"I wait for the day you take your last breath and leave me alone for good."

She turns, her hair swaying with such elegance Lambo wonders how he could be related to her. She doesn't take a step further, however, when somebody blocks her way.

Lambo stares at the scene and is curious to know if life simply hates him. Standing there in front of his mother is none other than Mama along with Tsuna and his other brothers.

"Hello, I'm Nana Sawada. I'm Lambo's mother."

Lambo feels like he's going to have a heart attack, does she not know who she's speaking to? Oh, of course, she doesn't. And why the hell are they here? Lambo gives his brothers a questioning glance but nobody is looking his way until Tsuna turns.

"Lambo, are you ok?" Tsuna asks with a frown. The young Lightning Guardian nods since he's too afraid to say anything in front of his mother and Timo. He doesn't want to get slapped in front of his Famiglia.

"Decimo, it is so nice of you to join us. If I'd known I was going to see you, I would have brought a gift," Timo says with a smile, putting himself in between his aunt and Nana just as Tsuna does the same. "Unfortunately, Lady Bovino and I were just leaving."

"I'm sure you can wait a few more minutes. I want to know why a member of your family thought it would be a nice idea to touch a member of _my_ Famiglia. I tolerate many things but nobody lays a hand on my brother without consequence. I don't care who you are."

Damn, so they _had_ seen that. Lambo takes a step forward, "Tsuna-nii, it was my fault. They didn't do anything wrong, honest."

Nana walks over to Lambo and wraps her arms around his trembling figure, "I'm sure you didn't do anything to deserve getting slapped, Lambo." She kisses his red cheek then turns to Tsuna. "Tsuna, Reborn-kun once mentioned Lambo's biological mother was quite beautiful," She turns to where Lady Bovino is clearly fuming and makes it obvious she's looking the woman over. "Are you sure that's her because I don't see it." She says with a smile.

"You repulsive fool, how dare you to speak to me in such a way?!"

"How dare I? Well, you seem to not only lack beauty but intelligence as well seeing as you have to resort to physical violence to appear superior. Oh, my, hitting a child to make you feel better is quite…repulsive, don't you think?"

"Auntie, it's time to go." Timo orders without breaking eye contact with Tsuna. Lambo can see he'll be quite the authoritarian boss. "I'll be seeing you around, Decimo. We'll talk about consequences at a later time."

They begin to walk away but Timo stops then turns to Lambo, "You know, Little Lambo," He takes out the brooch from his pocket, looking at it with disgust. "I don't think this is up to my standards after all. I'll just use the one Auntie had specially made for me." He says before throwing it as far as he can into the lake.

"No!" Lambo shouts.

"Why you-"

"Hayato," Tsuna stops his best friend from attacking the Bovino heir. "It's his brooch; he can do whatever he wants with it."

Lambo stares into the lake, wondering how he can get his precious item back as Timo laughs. "Goodbye, Vongola, have a nice day."

Lambo turns to watch his cousin and mother walk away, not sure how he should feel. Mama wraps him in her arms and Lambo can feel her tears on his shoulder.

"Mama, I'm ok. Please, don't cry."

"Oh, my baby is so strong." She gently holds his face in her hands. "But you don't have to be when I'm here. I'm so sorry you had to go through that with that terrible woman."

Lambo can feel his lips begin to tremble, "That woman is my mom," He breaks into tears himself. "And she doesn't love me; she doesn't want me at all!"

Mama's hugs have always been able to make him feel better but it doesn't seem to be working right now. He cries into her chest as she holds him tightly; wondering if there's something wrong with him.

"Lambo, there is nothing wrong with you."

Great, he'd said it out loud.

"They're the ones with the problem. Anybody who can't see what an amazing young man you are is a complete dummy."

Lambo can't help it, he laughs. He'd been so anxious about seeing his cousin and then seeing his mom had made him scared sick. But right now, here in Mama's arms and her soothing words, all those feelings are going away.

He feels warm, safe, loved. What more could he possibly want?

"Thank you, Mama."

With a smile, Nana stands back up and places a kiss in his hair. "I love you, Lambo. I want you to remember that you're as much my son as Tsuna is."

Lambo wipes his tears away and nods, "I know. I love you too…mom."

Nana smiles once more then gasps, "Oh! I left the stove on when I ran out in search of Lambo. Tsuna, I trust you boys will take your brother home safely?"

At Tsuna's nod, Nana quickly makes her way home leaving Lambo with his brothers.

"Did she conveniently not hear anything to do with Mafia?" Gokudera asks with a frown.

Tsuna shrugs, "I think she was too worried about Lambo to pay attention to anything else."

"You did panic when you read the email, everyone else just panicked with you." Yamamoto laughs.

"You guys saw my email?"

Tsuna sighs, "We were worried about you Lambo. We all thought somebody was hurting you at school and I even had people keep an eye on you. When we realized it wasn't anyone there, we had to figure out why you were so anxious."

"We accidentally saw your emails on your computer and luckily we made it in time."

"You _accidentally_ saw my emails? The same emails from the account I always log off from and the computer I always turn off before leaving my room? Those emails?"

"You didn't give us much choice, stupid! You should have just told us what was going on."

Lambo looks back towards the lake, "I was embarrassed. I didn't want you guys to know I still had my, um, the Bovino brooch. You all know how they treated me and would have laughed at me for still having it. When Tsuna-nii saw it, I felt really guilty, like I was betraying you."

"Lambo, you're our brother. No brooch is going to change that." Tsuna says kneeling down to look at his brother. "But if you want that brooch, I'll find a way to get it back for you."

With a shake of his head, Lambo offers a sad smile, "No, it really was just a brooch. They'll never accept me and I don't want them too, either. Not anymore, at least. I don't need them when I have a much better family."

"I'm relieved to hear you say that because" Tsuna puts his hand into his pocket and pulls something out. The Vongola boss gets Lambo's hand and places a brooch in it. This gold brooch doesn't have the Vongola emblem on it, instead, it's shaped as the emblem itself; much better than the Bovinos. "After I saw your old one I got the idea of getting our own."

Lambo stares at it with wide eyes, this was definitely much better; especially because this was coming from a place of love.

"Thank you, Tsuna-nii."

"You're welcome. Now, can you promise me that the next time you're threatened you'll let us know? We rather avoid any more surprises like this one."

Lambo laughs, "I can't promise anything but I'll try."

"You stupid cow, I'll kill you if you put us through another week like this one." Gokudera threatens.

"Tsuna-nii, Stupidera just threatened me!"

"Hayato, please don't threaten my brother."

"But Juudaime, he started it!"

"Haha! You got in trouble."

"Shut up, you freak!"

Lambo watches with amusement as his two brothers begin to fight, Tsuna worriedly trying to stop them. He wonders if he had been honest with his brothers from the beginning if maybe he wouldn't have suffered so much anxiety but it's too late to go back now.

He'll try to avoid ending up in this kind of situation again but he's the Lightning Guardian, trouble always finds him. Lambo could almost swear life enjoys watching him suffer. With a laugh, he joins his brothers and hopes he won't see Timo or his mo, um, Lady Bovino anytime soon.

* * *

A is for Anxiety

Thanks for reading! Please leave a review and I'll try to get B up soon. Thank you very much for your support! See you next time in Lambo's Corner, you do not want to miss it!


	2. B is for Bait

Welcome to Lambo's Corner! Here is the next letter to my A-Z Lambo Whump! I hope you enjoy the whump along with a healthy dose of comfort. Consider this the Halloween chapter because it's the closest to creepy or scary I can probably do at this time. Thanks!

 ** _WARNING:_** Checked with Grammarly at a godforsaken hour which is when I do my best work, it seems. As always, I'll go over it later with fresh eyes but let me know if you see something that needs correcting. Also, this includes yucky language, violence, retribution, and typical mafia behavior.

Disclaimer: I do not own but I hope to gain some reviews. To those I can't thank personally for previous reviews, thank you! All of your reviews always make my day and mean the world to me.

Without further ado B is for…

* * *

 _Drip_

 _Drip_

 _Drip_

The sound of water dripping slowly draws the young boy from his sleep. With a groan, his senses become more alert as he tries to piece together where he is and how he got there.

The smell is what Lambo notices first; the strong odor of sewage mixed in with a pungent coppery smell. Being involved with the Mafia for as long as he has, he immediately recognizes the smell of blood. Unfortunately, from his time with the Bovino's, he also knows the stench of rotting flesh; his stomach turns but manages to contain its contents together.

The second thing he notices as he tries to sit up is that everything is covered in darkness even though he's sure his eyes are open. Instinctively, he makes to remove whatever is covering his eyes but the third thing he becomes aware of is his hands are bound; rather tightly he thinks. The fourth thing he notices is his legs are bound as well but he can still move them; that's a good thing.

As best as he can, Lambo stretches his arms and sighs when they hit something solid; he carefully pushes his legs forward to ease his back against the wall. After a couple of minutes of trying, he's finally leaning against the hard structure. Taking a deep breath, he fights the urge to vomit as he begins to think.

" _So, I'm tied up, eyes are covered, there's blood around me but I don't think it's mine, and I have no idea where I am. Think, Lambo; how did I get here?"_

The twelve-year-old feels the all familiar sense of panic rising but uses his training with Hibari to calm down. Panicking will only make things worse by clouding his judgment which might cause him to make wrong decisions that could lead to a terrible death.

" _Way to think positive, stupid. Ok, what do I remember?"_

Lambo struggles to remember what happened but his memories are foggy at best, everything a blur. He winces when his head throbs, feeling like it is going to split in half if he keeps trying to think. Why can't he remember?

He tries to pull at his hands, hoping he can get free from what he thinks is rope; the material familiar thanks again to his experiences in the Mafia. Sadly, whoever tied him up did a fantastic job; damn it.

He stops his movement when he thinks he hears something, had that been a shout? Lambo tilts his head to the left, straining his hearing to see if it happens again but there's nothing. A moment later, he begins his struggle once more only to stop when he's sure he hears a scream. This time he doesn't need to move closer to the sound as it is resounding through the walls.

Lambo feels his pulse quicken, his heart beating faster as each scream sounds more and more agonizing. There's crying, he can hear someone crying but it's not the same person doing the screaming. That means there are three people at least; two hurting and one doing the hurting.

"Please, stop! You're killing him!"

Lambo swallows the last bit of saliva, his mouth growing dry at the shout. He can't see a thing and he's a bit grateful he can't. Sadly, that means his hearing is stronger and he can pick out the extra sounds along with the screaming: crunching, gurgling, and laughter. He's also sure he can hear blood splattering simply because the coppery stench is getting heavier.

He doesn't realize he's crying, his body shaking as he begins to remember how he ended up here. That realization making him wish he'd called his brother for help because he's sure he's about to die.

* * *

 _ **The Day Before**_

"Let me get this straight," Lambo narrows his eyes at the man standing before him, hands on his hips. "You want me as bait for a serial kidnapper?"

"You make it sound terrible when it's really not that bad. We know who he is, what he looks like and you'll have a tracking device on you at all times. We'll catch him and have him arrested before he can drag you into his car."

"Right, so why not tell the police and have them take care of it?"

He may be twelve but Lambo is far from stupid. He knows there's more to this than they're telling him and he will not do anything reckless without knowing all the facts.

The man who'd identified himself as Juuzo was a known gangster whose gang had caused a lot of trouble before but Hibari had made sure they calmed down. It's been months since they'd caused any problems but Lambo still wouldn't trust them.

Juuzo sighed, "We've tried going to the police but with our record, they won't listen to us. We're trying to do the right thing here but nobody believes us." He actually looks sincere and Lambo relaxes a bit which Juuzo immediately notices. "The only way they'll take us seriously is we give them irrefutable proof."

"The reason we came to you is that we know you're a strong kid and being Vongola means you can handle yourself. Besides, we'll make sure you stay safe otherwise we'll have to deal with Hibari-san and there's no way we want that."

Lambo looks at Juuzo's friend with a doubtful look but Kazuaki looks to be telling the truth as well.

"Don't you want to help those missing kids? I thought Vongola was all about helping people."

That last statement is what finally convinces Lambo to help. They're right; Vongola is about helping those that can't help themselves and with Hibari away in Italy on a mission with his other brothers, this is up to him. He straightens up his shoulders and glares at the two men in front of him.

"Fine, I'll help you catch them. Just remember that if something goes wrong my brother won't be happy. He _will_ find you and he will more than likely kill you."

Juuzo and Kazuaki stare at each other for a few seconds then nod at the same time. Juuzo looks at Lambo, "We'll make sure everything works out fine and we'll get those kids back with their families."

"Great! Then tell me what to do."

* * *

"Are you sure the reward money is worth it? If anything goes wrong, anything at all and that brat gets hurt we're dead! Hell, he doesn't even need to get hurt, Hibari-san will kill us just for getting him involved. Juuzo, this is a really bad idea."

Juuzo feels just as nervous as his friend but tries to look indifferent. He knows Hibari will hurt them just for talking to the cow brat but the reward is too great to ignore. The second they'd discovered who the kidnapper was (completely by accident), he knew Lambo would be their best bet. The kid looked the same as the other missing boys and he was easy to manipulate. The only problem had been Hibari but with the man gone, everything worked out.

Once they caught the kidnapper they'll be rich enough to run away somewhere and never deal with the Monster of Namimori.

"Everything will be fine, Kazuaki. Stop worrying and make sure the tracking device and microphone are working. We'll catch this guy and won't even deal with Hibari-san."

* * *

 _ **PRESENT TIME**_

Lambo throws up to the side, his throat burning as he heaves. This wasn't supposed to happen; everything had been going according to plan, what went wrong?

The suspect had found Lambo alone in the park just like Juuzo said but then when Lambo had tried to run, the man had grabbed him. Lambo had felt a prick in his neck and then…oh. He'd been drugged. That explained why his brain was all fuzzy but why hadn't Juuzo saved him? What had happened to them?

Lambo tries to loosen up the rope again while trying to ignore the terrifying screams. He knows somebody is dying and he doesn't want to think about it. He's so busy trying to get himself free he notices too late that everything's gone quiet.

"And what do you think you're doing, little one?"

Lambo freezes when he hears the amused voice approach; each step echoing loudly around the frightened preteen. Every inch of his being is shouting to run away but he can't do anything but listen. Now he wishes he could see because not being able to only makes everything a hundred times worse. He knows he's going to die and he won't see it coming.

"You had me worried for a while. I thought I'd given you too much Quaalude when you didn't wake up the first day. That's the drug that knocked you out, by the way."

" _First day? How long have I been out for?"_

The man chuckles, "I'm sure you're wondering how long you've been out for." Lambo backs away from the voice which sounds closer. "You've been out of it for over a day. I'm glad you've woken up, though."

Lambo tenses when hands touch his face but he doesn't move as the blindfold is removed. He keeps his eyes closed, not sure if he should do otherwise but the man tells him to. He slowly opens his eyes, blinks a couple of times and looks around. He's in a cell, an actual dark prison -made from stone- kind of cell and he wonders exactly where the hell he is.

Lambo turns back to the man; late thirties if he had to guess, greasy shoulder-length brown hair, about six feet tall but what really grabs Lambo's attention is the blood on his white butcher's apron. He had never felt such fear in his life. This is like a horror movie where Lambo is the best friend of the main character and is about to die.

"I'm Okabe and I will be handling your trip to England."

"I don't want to go to England."

Okabe laughs and it sends a chill through Lambo's trembling body. "I'm sorry but you don't have a choice. Don't worry; I'm sure you'll end with a very nice family."

"I have a family, I don't want to go." Lambo begins to cry against his will. He tries to wipe the tears away but his hands are still bound.

"Did you hear the boys crying earlier?"

Lambo doesn't say anything. He closes his eyes as he remembers the screams of terror and simply nods.

"They didn't want to go either and tried to fight against me. As much trouble as it is to find another kid, I like when they fight back because I get to chop them into pieces which I enjoy tremendously in soup."

Lambo's eyes widen in horror. This man…ate them? Is that what he'd heard, a boy being chopped into pieces; alive?

"I want you to know not to expect any help from your buddies, either. When they tried to save you, I was left with no choice but to kill them. It was quite funny because they seemed to prefer to die than to let me have you." He laughs as he recalls the memory. "I should have known it was a trap but your eyes were worth it. You'll sell for millions!" Okabe grins then makes sure Lambo is looking at him. "As long as you behave I promise not to lay a single sharp knife on your skin. Do we have a deal?"

Lambo nods when he fails to form any coherent reply. The man smiles then helps Lambo stand up but doesn't loosen the rope as he guides the preteen into the dimly lit hallway. Lambo wants to cry, to shout for help but he really doesn't want to end up as Okabe's dinner so he follows quietly and wonders if his brothers will ever know what became of their Lightning Guardian.

* * *

"Kazuaki, everything is ready. The bus leaves in an hour which gives us enough time to pick up the medicine and we're out of this place."

Juuzo shoves some more clothing into his raggedy backpack before taking one last look around his room. The abandoned house had been his home for almost a year, it would have served as a great base for his gang but Hibari had made sure to destroy that dream. He figures it's some kind of justice the cow brat paid for it.

When the kidnapper had shown up, he and Kazuaki had tried to take him down but the man had been too strong. He'd drugged the kid before beating the daylights out of them. They'd woken up in the hospital the next day to news that the whole incident had been recorded by a bystander, the video had apparently gone viral and they were perceived as heroes for trying to save the brat.

The second they'd been released, they had returned to where they had set their equipment up and tried locating the kid but the signal was gone. Fortunately or unfortunately, they'd managed to save the recording from Lambo's microphone and had been terrified to learn the kidnapper was also a murderer. They'd heard Lambo being transported then told he would make a delicious dinner before the signal had cut off as well.

Deciding it would be a bad idea to even try to find Lambo; they had purchased two bus tickets to as far away as possible and flee before the dreaded monster returned to find his brother missing. Everything was set.

"Kazuaki, are you finished?" Juuzo shouts as he rushes out and down the hall. He makes it to the dirty living space only to freeze in his spot. Kazuaki is kneeling in the center, tears streaming down his purple and bloodied face. Standing over him is none other than the Monster of Namimori himself. Hibari turns to glare at him and Juuzo's life flashes before his eyes.

Juuzo looks around at the other men standing nearby and knows his life is over. He knows he should stay and take his punishment like he deserves but he doesn't want to die knowing he could have lived. Does that even make sense? He's not sure but his brain seems to be shutting down as he turns to run only to stop when another tall figure steps out of one of the rooms.

This man has blazing, amber eyes and…is he on fire? There's a bright flame on his forehead as well as his hands but other than that he's perfectly fine; dressed in what looks like an expensive tailored suit. The man walks up to him, a calm yet lethal posture as he unbuttons his jacket and Juuzo can say for certain this man is more dangerous than Hibari. If Hibari is the bringer of death then this man is death himself.

"Juuzo, we need to talk."

Death has spoken and he has never sounded deadlier.

* * *

Lambo rubs his wrists once the rope is gone. They're sore and red but they won't fall off anytime soon. He's in another cell but this one has more light than the rest. There's a small table against the wall with tons of clothing on it; expensive looking ones. Could these belong to the other boys that have come through here?

"Pick a nice outfit for the pictures."

Lambo quickly nods when Okabe takes a step towards him. He makes his way to the table and picks up piece by piece. They're all pretty preppy looking and Lambo feels like making a face but refrains from doing so. He picks a pair of boxers, blue jeans, and a white button-up shirt that comes with suspenders and wonders what kind of people he's dealing with.

"Go change behind the curtain. There's nowhere to run to and nothing to help you escape so please hurry and change before I get hungry."

Lambo doesn't need to be told twice. He hurries behind the curtain to a small boxed room with nothing in it; not even a mirror. He changes into the new clothing and refuses to think about how they're a perfect size. Lambo steps out and Okabe whistles which almost makes the preteen throw up.

"It's a good look for you, kid. I'm sure you'll fit right in with your new folks." Okabe tosses him a pair of shoes and Lambo quickly puts them on. "And the finishing touch," He walks up to Lambo who closes his eyes when Okabe touches his neck. "There."

Lambo opens his eyes and slowly feels the bow tie he's now wearing. What kind of sick people is he being sold to?

"Go ahead and brush your hair a bit. We don't have time to shower you so it'll have to do."

Lambo does as he's asked and pretty soon he's standing in front of a green screen with a couple of furniture pieces; it looks like a typical bedroom set with a bed, desk, and chair. He supposes the green screen is to add any additional items.

"I'll explain how this works as I take a couple of shots so make sure you smile," Okabe says holding a camera with his bloody hands. "You're being sold to a family that wants to adopt a young boy but for one reason or other, they can't do so the legal way. You're to act as an orphan and adjust to your new life as soon as possible."

" _Wait, what?"_

"I will make sure to have someone close to your mother for the rest of your life; the second you say something or if you try to contact anyone from your previous life she will suffer a terrible death."

Lambo forces himself to look worried but silently thanks his lucky stars. If this is true then he'll be fine; his brothers will not leave mom alone as they look for him so he'll definitely be able to contact them. Okabe is oblivious to the fact he's Vongola. As long as he doesn't become dinner today he'll be fine.

"I love eating kids but your mom will make for a nice appetizer."

Lambo crouches down when he hears someone screaming for help. It sounds like a young boy just like earlier. Lambo covers his ears and closes his eyes, he can't help them. He can't help them and they're dying right down the hall.

"Please don't hurt them. I'll do whatever you ask but please stop." Lambo begs from his spot on the ground, tears falling from his face. He can smell the stench of blood and flesh and no matter how hard he tries it's too much to hold in. He falls to his knees and heaves. Nothing comes out, everything having already been thrown up earlier. His stomach hurts; his throat feels like it is on fire as he continues to scream for Okabe to stop.

He slowly opens his eyes and notices Okabe is no longer with him. Then he realizes the screaming had begun while Okabe was still here. Wait, did that mean there was more than one kidnapper?

" _There's so much blood, stop it! He can't cry anymore; you've ripped out his tongue!"_

Lambo's breathing picks up, he's sure he's gone pale and he's shaking terribly. He can't just stand by and let the other kids suffer; he needs to do something. Lambo looks around the room and sees the knife Okabe left behind. It's bloody and rusty; Lambo doesn't want to think how many kids it has hurt.

He picks it with trembling hands then slowly makes his way to the entrance of the cell. He holds the knife tightly against his chest while carefully keeping an eye out for danger but then the lights go off. He falls to his knees, knife still tightly in his hands. The screaming has stopped and he knows another boy is dead. Oh god, what if he's next? What if the other kidnapper doesn't want to sell him but instead eat him?

Lambo feels vile rushing up his throat but he forces it back down. He will not go down without a fight. Through the darkness, he can hear footsteps approaching; faint but getting closer. They're here for him. They're going to kill him. It is pitch black but he can hear the footsteps reach the entrance of the cell.

The preteen holds his breath not wanting to smell the blood any longer. Without thinking, he shoots up and strikes down with the knife at the same time. He feels the warm liquid drip down to his hands and knows he's hurt them. He lets go then makes a run for it but bumps into someone else.

"Please, don't eat me! Please, please have mercy. At least kill me before you chop me up. I promise not to scream anymore but please don't chop me up!" He cries while struggling to get loose. He can faintly hear Okabe saying something but Lambo is beyond hysterical.

"Turn on the fucking lights!"

Lambo stops moving but not because he wants to; his body goes limp as all energy leaves him. Okabe curses but doesn't let him go. Instead, Okabe goes down with the preteen being careful Lambo doesn't hit his head on the concrete floor.

The lights turn on forcing Lambo to shut his eyes. He can hear movement around him but then whoever is holding him shouts in terror, "Juudaime!"

Juudaime?

Lambo's eyes snap open, his head reeling from everything that's happened as he tries to focus on what's going on now. Gokudera is the one holding onto him but the smoke bomber isn't looking down at him, no; he's looking up at Tsuna who currently has a rusty knife embedded in his left hand; blood pouring out.

"Did I do that?"

Lambo weakly asks before the seriousness of the situation dawns on him. He just stabbed his brother. Holy hell he just tried to kill Tsuna!

"Lambo, calm down; please, try to breathe."

"I'm so-so-sorry!" He wails trying to get away from Gokudera. The smoke bomber lets him go to attend to Tsuna but the Tenth waives him off. Lambo clumsily runs into the changing room and pulls the curtain to hide. He drops down against the wall, hiding his head within his arms as he lifts his knees to his chin. He just tried to kill his brother.

"Lambo, I'm ok. I want to make sure you're ok as well." Tsuna calls out but doesn't try to force the curtain open.

The preteen can hear Gokudera asking Tsuna to have a seat, to let him check the wound, to have someone call an ambulance and finally, to go back outside. Lambo is tempted to yell for Tsuna to stay but he doesn't have to.

"I'm not going anywhere without Lambo. I'm fine, Hayato. Here," Lambo flinches when he hears the familiar sound of a knife being pulled out.

"Juudaime!"

"I'm fine! Go call Ryohei and tell him to come help me before I pass out."

Lambo hears Gokudera runoff followed by a light chuckle from Tsuna. "I won't pass out, Lambo. I just wanted Hayato to leave me alone for a bit."

"Haha; that's not very nice, Tsuna."

"It worked, didn't it?"

Lambo can feel new tears streaming down his face. How can they be laughing? He knows they're glad he's alive but the other kids are dead. They shouldn't be happy when Okabe and his accomplice tortured the others to death.

"Lambo, can you hear me?"

Tsuna softly asks from the other side of the curtain and Lambo knows his brother is sitting right in front of it.

"Yeah,"

"Can you tell me if you're hurt?"

Lambo shakes his head then remembers he can't be seen. "I'm not." He whispers.

"Good," Tsuna sighs from relief. "That's good. Can I come inside?"

Lambo hesitates. He wants to see Tsuna but at the same time, he doesn't. He stabbed his brother for goodness sakes.

"I'm sorry I stabbed you." He quietly sobs with guilt.

"Lambo, you had no idea it was me. I'm glad you stabbed me because that means if it had been that piece of trash then it would have given you a chance to run. You did well, Lambo."

"I did?"

"Yeah, you did. You have no idea how glad I am to know you're ok."

"But the other boys aren't. They were chopped into pieces so they could be eaten by Okabe. I heard them, Tsuna-nii, they were tortured!"

Lambo begins to cry again as the screams fill his head once more. They were asking for help and Lambo couldn't do anything for them.

"Lambo!"

The preteen closes his mouth but continues to whimper. It seems Tsuna had been trying to get his attention for a bit.

"Listen to me; I need you to come out for me. I need you to trust me and come out."

Lambo shakes his head but again, remembers he can't be seen. "I can't."

"Yes, you can. I promise everything will be fine. Please, come out from there."

Slowly, Lambo stands up and makes his way to the piece of cloth. He can hear Tsuna standing up as well but the drapery stays in place. He takes a deep breath then little by little he opens the curtain; revealing a big brother with a wrapped hand and a torn shirt.

"Tsuna-nii…" Tsuna wraps his little brother in his arms, holding him tightly against his chest. The Tenth rests his head on Lambo's and assures him everything will be fine. After a couple of minutes, Lambo back off to wipe his nose on the sleeve of his white shirt. "I'm sorry, Tsuna-nii."

"Hey, don't be sorry. I told you that was a good move."

"But I tried to kill you."

"No, you tried to protect yourself from someone who was trying to hurt you. You did well, little brother."

Lambo gives him a watery smile, "I guess it _was_ a good move."

"It was. You almost made Hayato cry." Yamamoto adds with his own laugh from where he's looking through the articles of clothing.

"Lambo, I'm going to take you to the room where the screams were coming from."

Tsuna hasn't finished speaking when Lambo is already shaking his head, fresh tears on his cheeks. "No, I can't go in there. They were asking for help and I couldn't do anything."

"I need you to trust me. If I just tell you what's in there you won't believe me. I need you to see it for yourself."

"But Okabe will kill me! He will skin me alive and then he'll make me into soup." He cries.

Tsuna grabs Lambo by the shoulders and intently stares into the boy's eyes, "He will not touch you again. He's been dealt with but we're not through with him, yet. He will get his trial within Vongola. Xanxus has already volunteered to be judge, jury, and executioner. Nobody messes with my family and gets away with it."

"But his accomplice…"

"There is no accomplice."

"I heard them-"

"Come on, let me show you."

Lambo allows himself to be guided by his brother down the hall which is now brightly lit. They pass the last cell which leads to a large room and Tsuna squeezes his hand. "Okabe is in there but he's unconscious, tied up and Hibari is standing next to him. Plus, you're with me."

Lambo nods his understanding; he's safe.

They walk inside and the first thing Lambo notices is Okabe's slump form towards the back with an irritated brother standing guard. The second thing he notices is a small black box which looks like a recorder in the center of the room on top of a table. Chrome and Mukuro are standing next to it with disdain.

"Go ahead," Tsuna instructs and Chrome offers Lambo an apologetic smile before pressing a button on the electronic device. Immediately, screams fill the room and Lambo instinctively crouches down, covering his ears and closing his eyes.

He can feel his hands shake, his stomach threatening to throw up and his eyes begin to water. They're screaming, begging for help. Why are his siblings allowing this to happen?

"Turn it off."

The screams stop but Lambo doesn't move; he can't move. Tsuna kneels down in front of him but doesn't touch him. "Lambo, look at me."

It takes all the energy he can muster but Lambo slowly looks up at Tsuna who's looking back with a frown. "There are no dead kids. The screams are a recording from an old horror movie."

"No, I-I heard them."

That can't be right. Lambo heard them, he smelt the blood and flesh, and Okabe had been covered in blood.

"Okabe used the recording to force the kids to behave. From what we got out of him, he's never killed anyone and the blood on him belongs to animals. He bought it along with some meat from a butcher across town to add to his illusion. The missing Namimori kids were hidden in another cell waiting to be shipped out but they're safe now. Thanks to you they'll be ok."

Recording, dead animals…Had it all been fake?

"But I heard them…"

"I know you did. He wanted to make sure you believed it was all real but I promise you it wasn't. He's been in the business of selling babies but was recently asked to deliver older children. Namimori was his first stop and it was also his last."

It had all been fake; the screams, the smell, all fake. Even though none of it had been real Lambo knows it'll be some time before he can forget this terrifying ordeal; it had been more than real to him.

"Juudaime, I got Turf-top."

Lambo ignores Ryohei when the boxer asks if he's ok then ignores Gokudera when he tells Ryohei Tsuna's the one that's hurt; asshole.

"He knows you're not physically dying; please ignore his faithful canine ass," Yamamoto says in a stage whisper which causes Gokudera to start arguing with the Rain Guardian but Lambo is too busy looking towards Okabe.

While Tsuna is being distracted by his three brothers, Lambo walks past Chrome and Mukuro, the latter of which simply allows him to pass while Chrome hesitates but doesn't say anything. Hibari doesn't move from his spot but doesn't try to stop him when Lambo begins to kick and punch the unconscious man.

Lambo's fists are bleeding and hurt by the time he's pulled off Okabe. Tsuna guides him outside of the underground cells into the bright daylight. The brightness hurts his eyes and he blames the sun for the fresh batch of tears. Tsuna leads him to a car where Lambo begins to cry once more.

"I hate him. I'm furious he lied to me but I'm so relieved none of it was real. I'm so glad nobody died."

" _ **He** will."_ Tsuna thinks but doesn't voice the thought out loud.

"I'm so glad it's all over, Tsuna-nii." Lambo continues to cry but this time he has a grateful smile on his face. "I'm so glad I volunteered as bait."

"Wait, you what?" Is the last thing Lambo hears before giving in to exhaustion.

* * *

" _The missing boys have been released from the hospital into their family's care. Namimori is grateful to Kazuaki and Juuzo who bravely searched for the culprit and released the victims._

 _Although they were nearly beaten to death and found unconscious, both have agreed to donate the reward money to the recovery of the victims as well as different charities."_

" _It's the least we can do. By stopping the madman, we learned a valuable lesson and have turned over a new leaf." Kazuaki said in a telephone interview._

" _We're grateful for the second chance death has given us and we'll take full advantage of it," Juuzo says from his bed; covered in a full body cast._

" _Do you mean life?"_

"… _Yeah, life…"_

Lambo laughs at the interview on the evening news. It had been three days since his kidnapping and a day since the authorities found Okabe's body floating down the river.

According to reports, he committed suicide by stabbing himself with a sword, smashing his head on concrete and somehow electrocuting himself before dropping into the river. A follow-up investigation was not needed although off the record the Varia is investigating into who was giving Okabe orders.

"What's so funny?"

Lambo scoots to the side allowing more space for Tsuna on the couch. "Just watching Kazuaki and Juuzo's interview; I'm glad you didn't kill them."

Tsuna shrugs, "I don't like killing unless necessary. They did something stupid but they technically kind of helped to bring Okabe down. It was a difficult decision to make."

"I'm sure Psycho-nii wasn't too happy with it."

Tsuna frowns, "No, he beat me afterward for not letting him bite them to death."

Lambo laughs again and Tsuna can't help but feel elated. His brother was going to be just fine. He'd make sure of it.

"Is your hand ok now?"

"Of course it is. Shamal checked me over just to be safe, gave me some medication and said I'll be fine so try not to worry, ok?"

Lambo nods then replies with, "I wanted to ask how you found out I was missing?"

Tsuna sits up and answers seriously, "Your kidnapping went viral. Dino watched it online and immediately called me. We managed to keep it away from mom and made up some excuse as to why you weren't going to be home that night. We came over as soon as humanly possible and tracked down those two idiots. Once we learned about the tracker, Spanner and Giannini worked their magic to locate you. I explained what happened to mom this morning and got an earful for keeping her in the dark but she understands why I did it. She's just glad you're ok."

"Great, she's going to smother me to death."

"And you'll love every minute of it." Tsuna ruffles Lambo's hair before asking, "How are the nightmares?"

Lambo slumps into the cushions, "Bad. I can still hear the screams and when I wake up drenched in sweat, I can smell the blood as if it's on me." He mutters.

"That's normal. We'll get through this together just like we always do; as a family."

"I know. Thanks, Tsuna-nii."

Lambo moves closer to his brother and doesn't say anything when Tsuna wraps an arm around his shoulders. He's glad everything worked out fine this time but he will never volunteer as bait ever again. Especially not without Tsuna knowing about it. Apparently, the two idiots had told everyone they'd forced Lambo into a trap, they must have thought Tsuna wouldn't believe Lambo would willingly volunteer. Lambo thought at twelve years of age he was too old for a spanking but he'd been wrong. His bum is still aching.

"How's your butt?"

"Tsuna-nii…"

* * *

Ta-da! How was that? I hope it was ok and I hope you'll let me know with fifty words or less. Lol

I actually wanted B to be for boogeyman with Hamilton Howard "Albert" Fish as inspiration but it got dark; too dark. It got to the point where I was grossing myself out and could not keep writing. I deleted everything I had and started over with Bait instead. If you can stomach it, look up Albert Fish, the real-life boogeyman. Yikes!

So, thanks for reading and hope to see you next time on Lambo's Corner. You do not want to miss it!


	3. C is for Crash

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

Once again, thank you for all the lovely reviews! As I've said before they really do keep me going. ^_^ Please leave me a review to keep my inspiration up and running!

I don't think I mentioned this before but most of the chapters in the A-Z Lambo whump will be connected to each other but there will be some random stand-alone ones. I'll let you guys know if and when a chapter has nothing to do with the others. Thank you!

 **WARNINGS:** No beta, language, Mafia business and I think that's it. As usual, I used Grammarly but probably missed a few things so I'll go over it at a later time. Let me know if you see something that needs correcting, though. Thank you!

Without further ado, C is for…

* * *

"This is so stupid…" Lambo mumbles against his hand as he watches the trees go by. It is nearing nightfall; the sky dimming its light as he rides to his weekend destination with his brother. Luckily, there are lights around the mountain so they don't have to drive in total darkness.

Some bored idiot decided it would be a great idea to get the younger members of the allied families together to bond and build stronger loyalties through friendship while the Dons had their annual meeting. What kind of mafia boss thought friendship was even possible between teens who thought each of their families was better? Oh, right…the Sawada Tsunayoshi kind. The Tenth has been preparing for this "friendly party" for almost three weeks even though Lambo wanted nothing to do with it.

"Cheer up, Lambo! This is an EXTREME opportunity to get to know other kids around your age. You might even make some friends outside of the family."

Lambo spares his brother a wary glance. The party would be for the teens but each family is allowed one adult to accompany them just to help them feel safer. Nobody wanted to admit they were worried about fights breaking out amongst the rowdy bunch.

At the Vongola residence, nobody had wanted to be Lambo's escort; there would be a separate banquet for the families after the meetings while the kids played with each other which led to names being thrown into a fedora resulting in one EXTREME name being pulled.

They were all supposed to ride together but unfortunately, Lambo had needed to stay late in school to make up a test so Ryohei would be driving them up to the gathering.

"You're just happy because Lussuria will be there. And who says I need friends? I already have I-Pin, Fuuta, _and_ Fran; I don't need anymore," Lambo paused, "Scratch that, I-Pin and Fuuta are no longer friends since they don't have to suffer along with me."

"They have training and exams they can't miss, you know that. Besides, this will give us a chance to spend some time with each other. It'll be EXTREMELY fun!"

"Yeah, until somebody decides to take us out. Seriously, this is _such_ a bad idea I can't believe anyone agreed to something so stupid. Can you not see how much blood will be spilled?"

Ryohei barks out a laugh, "Octopus-head is right, you are dramatic."

"Don't even mention Stupidera." Lambo huffs as he crosses his arms over his chest and leans back in his seat. Arguments between the Lightning and Storm Guardian are a regular occurrence which means they are typically ignored. Every now and then, however, somebody has to interfere before they go all out and destroy the Vongola Estate; again.

"You said some mean things, Lambo. I'm sure he's still feeling hurt by what you said." Ryohei states with disappointment.

The teen feels a slight pang of guilt before brushing it away, "He started it! And I didn't lie, he really is a hypocrite for wanting me to go out and socialize when he hates it."

"Hayato is different than you. He didn't have the nice childhood you're enjoying and wants to make sure you don't waste it by yourself. That's why you shouldn't have mentioned his lonely childhood; I'm very disappointed; I thought you knew better."

Lambo sighs. Perhaps he had crossed the line. "I do know better; I'm sorry. I'll apologize to him later."

"You have your phone, call him now."

Lambo holds back a groan as he pulls out his phone from his pocket. "Once I apologize, can we go back and forget all about this stupid plan?"

"Nice try but you apologizing and the party has nothing to do with each other."

"I figured you'd say that." Lambo looks down at his phone then back at his brother with a sigh, "No signal. I promise I'll call him once we reach the top."

"You got EXTREMELY lucky!" Ryohei grins, ruffling Lambo's hair.

Lambo is going to offer one of his infamous snarky comments but Ryohei speaks first.

"Now, how about you tell me the real reason you didn't want to come."

Lambo shrugs, "Because I hate people, simple as that."

"And the other reason is?"

The Lightning Guardian hesitates for a second. He didn't think anybody would have thought there was another reason for not wanting to attend. He would have made up another excuse but knew his brother would see right through it again.

"I don't want to embarrass Tsuna-nii." He answers indifferently. It isn't a secret that Lambo is seen as the weak link of the Vongola; everyone knows it. The thirteen-year-old lacks confidence and tries to cover it up by acting like a spoiled brat. He doesn't want people -let alone his family- to know how insecure he feels so he keeps it to himself. Of course, his family could not and would not be fooled.

"You'll be fine as long as you don't pull any pranks." Well, maybe not all of them.

"Uh, that's not what I meant, Ryo-nii." He sighs, "Let's just get this weekend over with."

Lambo turns to face his brother when Ryohei chuckles, "I know what you mean and you need to stop doubting yourself. I can tell you over and over again how EXTREMELY great you are but it won't make a difference if _you_ don't believe it."

Lambo looks out the window, darkness having covered the forest. He knew his family constantly tries to build his self-confidence by giving him small missions but they usually end with Lambo getting hurt and one of his siblings needing to save him.

"You don't understand, Ryo-nii. Look at Timo, he's respected, feared and is already proving to be a great leader for the Bovinos while I'm here trying to catch up to you guys. All I'm good for is to cause trouble and everyone knows it."

"Timo is almost twenty; he's had more time to grow into his role and nobody likes him anyway. Besides, just because you do embarrassing things doesn't mean you're an embarrassment."

"I'll believe that when I actually make a difference. I just need that one chance to do something where I can help without screwing anything up. Even if I help just one person I can say I did something good; something that gives me a purpose, I guess."

Ryohei turns to look at Lambo before quickly turning his eyes back to the road, "Where is all of this coming from? I can't remember you saying anything about this before."

Lambo shrugs, "It's kind of hard to say something like this to your perfect siblings. I didn't think anyone would understand how it feels to try and meet such high expectations when you're the ones _setting_ said expectations. Nobody else struggles like I do so it's embarrassing to admit it." Well, that was easier to admit than expected.

"I take it you haven't told anyone about this?"

With a shake of his head, Lambo leans back against his seat, "It's embarrassing, Ryo-nii. You try being the loser in the family; it's pretty crappy."

When Ryohei doesn't say anything, Lambo begins to wonder if he maybe he should have kept quiet after all but then his brother speaks, "You've done plenty, Lambo. Remember how you saved those kids last year?"

"I was kidnapped while acting as bait; doesn't count."

He opens his mouth to say something else but stops when a pair of headlights speeds towards them.

"Ryo-nii!"

Lambo has heard people say that accidents happen much too fast, so fast they never see it coming. He could now say that they were wrong. Lambo can clearly see the car heading towards them, the headlights bright in the darkness. Ryohei turns the steering wheel in an attempt to avoid the oncoming vehicle but the other car turns as well and Lambo only has time to think it did it purposely to hit them before they collide.

The impact causes their car to crash into the side of the mountain, the airbags deploying immediately on contact. The collision forces their car to flip once then twice before bursting through the weak railing and down the grassy slopes. Lambo has his eyes closed as they continue down the mountain, knowing for sure they are going to die.

His head slams back towards the seat as the car finally comes to a stop after hitting a couple of trees. His heart is beating rapidly, his breath coming in short gasps as he tries to make sense of what just happened. He forces the bag down with trembling hands, surprised he somehow survived. The car is upside down, windows broken with cold air coming through.

Lambo groans when he tries to move his feet, something doesn't feel right and he is afraid something has broken. "Ryo-nii, are you ok?" He croaks.

He turns to the side but can't see anything through the darkness that has engulfed the car. He feels around his pockets until he finds what he is looking for. Luckily, his phone hasn't been damaged; unluckily, there is still no signal. He searches for the flashlight app and turns it to his brother; he feels his heart stop at the sight of Ryohei. Blood; so much blood is coming from somewhere Lambo can't see.

"Ryo-nii," He tries again but still no response.

Lambo manages to unbuckle himself, albeit shakily; his body drops to the bottom hard but he doesn't have time to waste thinking about how hurt he is. He makes his way to his brother, glass breaking underneath his hands and knees but doesn't stop. He can feel the throbbing in his left ankle but forces that aside; he has to make sure Ryohei is alive.

"Ryo-nii, hey,"

The boxer's airbag has already shrunk which leaves the Sun Guardian loosely hanging in his seat; only the seatbelt is keeping him in place with his arms dropped to the sides. Upon closer inspection, Lambo can see a head wound on his brother's left side along with a deep gash on his arm; both bleeding profusely. Ryohei has cuts and scratches covering his face as well but they're not bleeding as much.

The teen knows he shouldn't even think about moving his brother since there is no telling what other damage he could inflict in the process but he has to stop the bleeding somehow.

"Ryo-nii, please wake up. I need you to tell me what to do." He whimpers but knows his brother can't hear him. "Please, don't die…"

He sniffs but forces himself to stay calm. If he is to panic now he won't be of any help at all. He tries to think but he can't focus due to how loud his heart is beating. When he finally manages to control himself, it's only to see a small flame appear over the hood.

"Oh, no…"

Without further thinking, he unbuckles his brother while holding the boxer's upper body to avoid severe damage to the head and tries to adjust him as quickly as possible; wincing at the loud thud when his brother hits the bottom (roof) of the car. It's no easy task with his brother being much bigger than Lambo and nothing but dead weight at the moment.

He shudders at the choice of words but pushes them aside. Once he has Ryohei as stable as possible Lambo crawls out of his own window and tries to stand up.

The pain is instantaneous. His left leg gives out, forcing Lambo to the ground with a yell. He looks down and hopes to all things holy it isn't broken but he can see how swollen his ankle is. Not having the time to try and figure it out, he clenches his teeth and painfully stands. He holds onto the car as he makes his way around, his left leg dragging along.

Once he is by the window, he forces the door open and leans down to grab his brother. "Ryo-nii, please wake up." He mutters as he tries and tries to pull Ryohei out to no avail.

The small flame has grown and Lambo knows it's only a matter of minutes before it completely engulfs the car; if it doesn't explode first.

He looks around as he shouts for help but knows it will be impossible for anybody to hear him in the empty forest. The darkness makes the forest extra creepy with shadows lurking around thanks to the glow of the growing flames. The Lightning Guardian gulps but continues to pull with all his strength. His leg is in excruciating pain but he doesn't slow down and is finally able to get Ryohei out of the vehicle after a few more tries. He doesn't stop moving; with his leg dragging, he keeps pulling his brother away from danger.

The small flame has now become enormous; the immense heat making Lambo sweat even from a distance; pain might be a contributing factor as well. After a couple of minutes, Lambo tugs on Ryohei one final time before the pain in his leg becomes too much.

He cries out in agony as he falls to the ground, tears streaming down his face. Lambo looks back to the car, watching as Ryohei's baby is engulfed by the fire when something shiny catches his eye. There, hanging off the upside down seat is Ryohei's boxing gloves necklace.

"It must have fallen off when he dropped down. What do I do?" He knows how important the necklace is to his brother since it was a graduation gift from Colonnello but he also knows Ryohei wouldn't want him to risk his life for it. Without another thought, Lambo hobbles to the car; the heat unbearable as he gets closer. He grabs the sterling gloves and chain then turns back as quick as he's able to.

He's made it halfway to his brother when the car explodes. The force reaches Lambo and he's thrown into the ground with a grunt. Lambo clenches his teeth as he slowly gets up again when he feels something hot on his leg. He turns and curses at the small flames licking at his pants. The teen quickly pats the fire down which luckily isn't hard to do but he can already feel the blisters forming on his hands; a searing pain in his legs as well.

Once finished, Lambo gasps at the bright light that is now consuming their vehicle. The fire and smoke clearly visible even in the darkness. The flames mesmerizingly beautiful; the teen can't help but stare.

Lambo winces as he turns to where his brother still lay unconscious and sighs. That had been too close. He gently puts the necklace around his neck before continuing to Ryohei then falls to the ground with a hiss. His hands are red and bleeding but he knows he'll live. He's more worried about the Sun Guardian who still hasn't moved.

"Ryo-nii; Ryo-nii, please…"

He begs but his brother doesn't show any indication he's been heard. Lambo slowly and painfully tears off a piece of his torn shirt and applies it to Ryohei's head wound which continues to bleed then another piece to the boxer's arm. In his condition, Lambo knows he wouldn't make it very far if he tried to look for help. With his luck, he'd probably get lost and would never be found. No, all he can do at the moment is wait and hope somebody finds them soon.

* * *

Muttering; that's what Lambo can barely make out through his distorted thoughts as he regains consciousness. With a groan, he slowly opens his eyes but shuts them back at the bright lights dancing around. After a few tries of adjusting to the brightness, he squints at the men standing over him. What the hell happened?

The memories of the accident rush back and Lambo sits up before grabbing his head in pain. Ryohei, what had happened to Ryohei?

"Take it easy, kid. You're going to be ok." One of the men says and Lambo can now see he's wearing a paramedic uniform. So they'd been rescued?

"Where's Ryo-nii? Where's my brother?" He asks anxiously while looking around. They're still at the accident site, the car no longer up in flames with firemen clearing the site. There are bright lights everywhere and police all over the place; probably trying to figure out what happened.

"Is that the man that was with you?"

Lambo nods, nausea threatening to make him vomit. "Where is he?"

The teen notices the two men look at each other as if trying to decide what to say. The action makes Lambo's heart race with worry. Did something happen?

"Is he ok? Where is he?"

"We're going to take you to the hospital to get checked out. You have second-degree burns on your hands and legs that need to be treated immediately along with a possible concussion. You must have hit your head against the window if the bleeding is any indication."

 _Is_ he bleeding? Concussion; he can't even remember hitting his head but that might explain why he feels like his brain is going to explode.

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what happened to my brother."

One of the men sighs, "He was unresponsive when we got to you guys. We have no way of knowing how serious he's been injured but he's been flown to Namimori General so they'll take care of him."

Lambo doesn't say anything; he doesn't know what to say to that. Did he make things worse when he moved Ryohei? He hadn't had a choice but he still feels guilt overwhelm him.

"Neither one of you has any identification, what's your name?" A police officer asks as the other two begin to strap him into a basket-like device.

"My name is Lambo."

"Lambo, do you have your parents' number?"

The teen gives off Gokudera's number since he'll definitely answer in case Tsuna's at his meeting. The officer speaks to his brother and tells him Lambo will be flown over to St. Helen's Hospital and to please have someone meet them there.

Lambo snaps out of his thoughts at the name and looks up to the officer, "Ryo-nii was sent to Namimori General."

One of the paramedics gives him a soft pat on his shoulder, "Namimori General doesn't have a burn unit and you need to have a specialist look at you."

"No, I'm not going somewhere else. I want to go with Ryo-nii." He says in a rush as he tries to get free from the restraints but it's difficult to do when he can't use his hands.

"Calm down, Lambo. Those burns can be serious if left untreated."

"I don't care. I want to be with my brother!" He shouts as he continues his struggle but it's pointless. The restraints are tied and secured; he's ready to be lifted off. Lambo hears the helicopter before he sees it and begins to cry out. "I want my brother!"

He continues to struggle to the point where one of the men says he'll have to be sedated but before that can happen, the officer whistles. He walks over to Lambo who stops moving when the man puts the phone on speaker.

" _Lambo, stop resisting and do as they say. I'm on my way but I need you to be brave until I can be with you."_

"Ryo-nii needs me, Tsuna-nii. I can't leave him alone."

" _He won't be alone; the others are on their way to see him so don't worry. Do as you're told and let them take care of you. Is that understood?"_

Tsuna's boss voice is not to be disobeyed; Lambo nods, "I understand."

" _You'll both be fine. I'll be with you shortly."_

Even though Tsuna sounds all business, Lambo has known him long enough to hear the concern in his brother's voice. He would not make things worse by acting like a child. He nods at the men and once he's tied to the cable, he's pulled up into the helicopter. He's in pain, he's alone and he's scared. Lambo wants to be brave but he doesn't know how. He closes his eyes as tears begin to fall but he doesn't make a sound. He doesn't realize he's dozing off until he's far too gone to care and slips back into unconsciousness.

* * *

" _I must have done something really bad in another life to deserve all my suffering."_

He knows he's in a hospital without having to open his eyes; the slow familiar beeping from a heart monitor sounding through the room. Lambo groggily opens his eyes then takes a few seconds to focus.

Yup, he's in a typical hospital room; white walls, disinfectant smell, and crappy mattresses. He realizes he's wearing an oxygen mask which he promptly removes although with a bit of trouble seeing as his hands are both bandaged up. Lambo looks around the room and quickly realizes something else; he's alone. Why is he alone and where's Ryo-nii?

" _Ryo-nii,"_

What if something had happened to his brother? That would explain why he is alone otherwise his brothers wouldn't leave him by himself while he's injured. He carefully pulls off the sheet and winces when he tries to move his legs which are also bandaged with a special wrapping around his left ankle; great.

Slowly, he lifts his injured legs over the side of the bed with a hiss but doesn't stop. He needs to find out what is going on. He's about to walk to the door but remembers about the monitor and pushes the power button; experience has taught him the monitor alerts the staff if it doesn't detect a heartbeat.

He almost falls over but manages to regain his balance as he struggles to make it to the door. He slides the door open and takes a peek outside. There's a nurses station off to the side but there's nobody looking his way. Lambo painfully wobbles down the hall looking for an exit but stops when somebody clears their throat behind him.

The teen turns around and gulps at the stern stare the nurse -hands on hips- gives him. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business. Don't you have patients to take care of?"

"Have you noticed you're wearing a hospital gown?"

Lambo looks down and frowns, how had he missed that? He winces at the sharp pain that shoots up his leg but that only serves to encourage him. He tries to flee but his left leg gives out just as he reaches the burn unit's exit. He falls to the floor with a cry then whimpers from the pain coursing through his body.

The nurse reaches his side and asks for assistance to help Lambo back to his room. "I've been a nurse for five years and you're the first one to try to escape."

"Really?" Lambo asks through clenched teeth.

"No, not really," She sighs, "But you're the first one whose family attaches a tracking device to his gown."

Lambo nods, "That sounds like them. Um, do you by any chance know if my brother Ryohei is ok? He was sent to Namimori General."

The nurse shakes her head, "I haven't heard anything, I'm sorry."

Lambo feels the tears threatening to fall. What if his brother…

"Oi, where the hell do you think you're going, you stupid brat?"

Lambo turns to the voice and the tears begin to fall at the sight of his brother; his very irate looking brother.

"Haya-nii, did Ryo-nii die?" He asks through sobs and snot.

Gokudera's right eye twitches, "Turf-top will be fine. He woke up hours ago and demanded he be brought over or else he'd break out. He's settling in his new room as we speak. We left you while we got everything ready."

"I guess you were right about the tracking device. He turned off the heart monitor before pulling the patch off. Thankfully we're not as careless as some people think." The nurse says with a chuckle as Gokudera takes Lambo from her and carries him back to his room.

"I already apologized for that, Minamino-san. We've gone through this before and knew he'd run off if you took your eyes off him for even a second."

"If I remember correctly, you're the one whose eyes were looking away from him."

Lambo wipes his nose, "Haya-nii, why are you blushing?"

Minamino chuckles when Gokudera growls. He dumps Lambo into his bed none too gently causing the teen to yelp. "Shut up, stupid brat. I'll let Juudaime know you're fine."

He's about to walk out the room but Lambo calls out to him, "Haya-nii, I'm sorry for what I said at home. It was rude and wrong and I really didn't mean it."

"Tsk, we both said something stupid so don't worry about it. Just hurry up and get better." The Storm Guardian quickly leaves the room as the nurse checks over Lambo.

"Your brother sure is a grumpy one, isn't he?" She asks as she puts the oxygen mask back on. "Leave this on for a few minutes then you can take it off."

Lambo nods, "You have no idea how grumpy he is."

"He's kind of cute, though." The brunette adds with a smile.

"If by cute you mean a pain in the ass then sure. He can be an asshole but he's ok, I guess."

"Language, Lambo."

Lambo turns to the door with a large smile, "Tsuna-nii!"

Tsuna chuckles as he embraces his baby brother. "You really had me worried," The Tenth states before letting his brother go so the nurse can continue her check-up. "I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up but Ryohei was causing a scene upstairs. Is he ok?" He asks the nurse.

Nurse Minamino mutters a yes as she turns the heart monitor back on after attaching the adhesive patch on his chest then says, "There, all done. I'll let the doctor know you're awake so she can come see you; she'll probably give you some more pain medication so just hold on until then, ok? If you guys need anything else just ask."

"Thank you, Minamino-san. I'll make sure he doesn't leave again."

"I'm sure you will. The last thing I want is to deal with Gokudera-san's attitude again." She grumbles as she leaves the room; Tsuna laughing as she does.

"Tsuna-nii, is Ryo-nii ok?"

Tsuna smiles at Lambo, "He'll be fine. He suffered a major concussion but you know how quickly he heals; the doctors were shocked when he woke up demanding to know where you were. If Takeshi and Kyoya hadn't been there he probably would have run over here."

"I'm so relieved." Lambo slides back into bed.

"We all are. You saved his life, Lambo. You were quite the hero."

Lambo feels his face burn at the compliment and shakes his head. "It was nothing."

"It was EXTREMELY something!"

Tsuna and Lambo turn to the door where Ryohei is standing, head bandaged up and hospital gown matching his youngest brother.

"Ryohei, your butt is showing…" Tsuna sweat drops when Ryohei ignores him as he makes his way to Lambo's side. "Weren't the others supposed to keep you in your room?"

"Kyoya left to go see the accident site and Octopus-head is talking to Minamino-chan. I had to come see Lambo."

"Ryo-nii, I'm so glad you're alive."

Ryohei hugs his little brother, mindful of their injuries and Tsuna can't help but smile at the sight. His brothers had almost died but thankfully they would be ok.

"Lambo, you saved my life. You were EXTREMELY brave today and I couldn't be prouder."

"It was nothing…"

"You need to stop doubting yourself. Remember what I said before the accident? You're already great but you don't believe it even after pulling me from a burning vehicle all by yourself."

Lambo looks at his bandaged hands, "You're my brother; I couldn't just leave you there."

"If it had been anyone else, I have no doubt you would have done the same," Tsuna adds.

"Tsuna's right, you would have saved a complete stranger if that had been the case. You're willing to risk your life for others and that's incredible."

Lambo thinks about what his brothers are saying and knows it took guts to do what he did but he can't seem to process the fact that he's the one that did it. He's so used to being called a coward and loser that he was starting to think that's all he is.

"Lambo, we're not perfect, either. We make mistakes, we work hard to pretend we know what we're doing but the truth is we don't. I'm sorry we made you feel like you had to meet such high expectations when all we want is for you to reach your own full potential."

"Yeah, don't think you have to be like us. Be yourself to the EXTREME!"

Lambo doesn't know what else to say, "I'm guessing Ryo-nii told you what I said?"

Tsuna nods, "You should have come to us sooner. You can talk to us about anything and I'm sorry you thought you couldn't. We're here for you, Lambo."

"I know. I'm sorry for being a pain in the a-"

"Ahem."

"-butt. I'll work on my communicating skills."

Tsuna and Ryohei smile. "That's all we ask."

"Lambo, where did you find this?" Ryohei asks as he pulls off his sterling boxing gloves. Lambo gulps. "I know I had it on before the accident and I know you wouldn't have thought to take it off me to put it on yourself with everything that was going."

Lambo blinks. Did they know?

"You dropped it when I pulled you out. I didn't have time to do anything else but put it on."

Lambo remembers how he used to be able to lie his way out of plenty of trouble when he was younger. Unfortunately, as the years went by, his siblings learned how to know when he lied.

"Lambo, did you go back to the burning car to get it?"

"It wasn't that bad when I went for it. I pulled you out then went back to get it. I know how important it is to you and I also knew I would be fine so it wasn't a big deal." There's no point in lying when they already know the truth.

Ryohei is looking at him strangely and Lambo isn't sure what his brother is thinking. The Sun Guardian goes to him and hugs him once more. "If you ever risk your life for something so stupid, I will beat you myself. Don't ever put yourself in danger for something that can easily be replaced."

Lambo has never heard Ryohei speak so seriously and it sends a chill down his spine. He nods and releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding when Ryohei steps back.

"I won't thank you because you put yourself in harm's way but I will thank you for having the best intentions. Please don't ever do this again. Just look at what happened to your hands and legs."

"How do you know I burned them getting your lucky gloves?"

"Because if you'd gotten burnt before, there is no way you would have pulled him from the car without making them worse," Tsuna says.

"Oh, right. Um, since I'm already hurt will I still get grounded?"

Tsuna groans, "You're fine if you're trying to get out of a punishment but I'll let it slide this once."

"Thanks, Tsuna-nii."

Tsuna's phone vibrates in his pocket and he pulls the device out. The Tenth frowns at his screen, types something then puts his phone back in his suit.

"That was Kyoya; the other driver is gone. The police said the car he was driving was reported stolen two nights ago. They found opened beer bottles so they think he might have been driving drunk when the accident happened."

Lambo stares at his brother, "There's more, isn't there?"

"They searched the car for prints but the car was clean; absolutely no prints or hairs or anything."

"I'm starting to think the accident wasn't an accident. Somebody extremely tried to hit us."

Lambo licks his lips, "I remember when Ryo-nii swerved to try and avoid it the other car did the same a second after. He wanted to make sure to hit us."

"We don't know who they were trying to hurt or why but we'll find out. In the meantime, neither one of you is allowed to go anywhere alone. Is that clear?"

"That's EXTREMELY not cool!"

"Oi, keep it down. You're in a hospital." Gokudera says as he walks into the room. He immediately knows something is wrong and asks Tsuna to be brought up to speed.

Lambo doesn't pay attention, instead, he thinks back to the moment just before the cars crashed against each other. He remembers seeing someone in the driver's seat wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses but he didn't see his face. What he does remember seeing is a cruel grin and what worries Lambo is that he's sure it was directed towards him.

"It might have been someone who is attending the Dons Summit."

"Lambo,"

The Lightning Guardian snaps back into attention and knows he missed what they were saying but he decides to tell them what he remembers as he rubs his bandaged hands together. "I don't think this is over."

The youngest Vongola member can feel a storm approaching and he knows it's not good. He can only hope he'll be strong enough to fight through it along with his siblings because he knows they won't let him fight this alone.

* * *

Whew, I don't know where I'm getting all this inspiration from. Oh, right…reviews! Keep them coming, yeah? I hope you enjoyed C is for Crash and make sure you read the next letter which will continue where this one left off.

Also, I was wondering if True Strength might be too much for readers so I would appreciate your opinions on that one as well. Whether in a review in that story or message me. I feel like maybe it's not as good due to the sensitive nature of the topic it's about but let me know so I can figure out if I should take my writing in another direction. I wanted to try my hand at more serious matters but maybe I should stick with light hurt/comfort. What do you guys think?

One last thing before I forget. I would like to challenge myself a bit more so I was wondering if anybody had any suggestions for a letter they would like to see. I'm not making any promises but I'd like to try and write something asked of me instead of just a random idea. Let me know!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner. You do not want to miss it!


	4. D is for Disaster

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

The cobwebs have been cleared away and the dust is gone. Prepare for more to come! Please let me know you're still with me with a simple review. Thank you!

 **Warnings** : Pretty much the same as every chapter I post. Language, violence, mafia business, posted at an ungodly hour and more than likely riddled with mistakes which I will go over again later. Thank you, Grammarly for trying your best to teach me!

Without further ado, D is for…

* * *

Disaster! Lambo knows he's going to be in major trouble when he returns to the house but he is going crazy being confined at home surrounded by his overbearing, overzealous, and overprotective family. In fact, they can be blamed for Lambo needing to sneak out since they were basically holding him hostage. All in all his life is a total disaster at the moment.

The young teen had finally snapped thus explaining his current location - hiding in their neighbors' shed. Okay, so he didn't exactly plan his escape well enough – at all – and had only managed to get next door before fear took hold. He isn't running away more like simply taking back some control of his life for as temporary as he can.

It has been three weeks since his car accident which as it turns out, hadn't been an accident at all. Lambo, along with Ryohei, had been assigned a body guard which Lambo had agreed to the first day but now seemed to be overkill. His brothers sure had a habit of overdoing everything…

Ryohei was taking it better than the youngest brother but that's because the boxer is usually the one following the others around. He doesn't mind the company. If anything he enjoys it since it's just a regular day of hanging out. Lambo, on the other hand, hates being babysat and misses his solitude. It has reached the point where he's glad to go to school because even though he knows somebody is watching, he can't feel them breathing down his neck.

This is why he's had enough; school is actually a welcomed option. Nope, he needs some time off to get his head back to normal without his overcomplicating brothers.

"Lambo?"

The small voice from outside almost makes him weep with joy. He'd alerted his best friend of their meeting place before sneaking out; refreshments and snacks _were_ needed after all.

The thirteen-year-old opens the door then quickly pulls Kenji inside before sticking his head out. There is no sign of anybody else so he closes the door once more. He turns to Kenji and is relieved to see the sandwiches in the teen's arms. "I am starved! Kenji, you rock."

Kenji sighs, "How long are you planning to stay here? It's not exactly comfy or...clean."

He says as he looks around at the various tools and equipment hanging around. Without anything better to do, he sits down hoping there aren't any loose nails or spiders crawling around.

"Ust ntil ey ind e," Lambo mutters with his mouth full of turkey and ham from where he's sat on the ground across his friend. Kenji doesn't bother feeling disgusted, already used to his best friend.

"It's sad I completely understand what you're saying."

Lambo grins, "If you talk with your mouth full I'm sure I'd understand you too."

"My manners will never allow it."

Lambo laughs then frowns at the lingering taste in his mouth. He inspects the sandwich in his hand before lifting the bread off and takes a sniff - the familiar aroma of his favorite spicy sauce making its presence known.

"Kenji, when I asked for snacks I didn't think you'd go through the trouble of bringing anything other than candy. Did your mom make these?"

"You know my mom doesn't care enough to make me food," Kenji replies indifferently with a shrug. Lambo tries not to wince already knowing how cruel Kenji's mom is. He has heard stories from Kenji but knows his friend still isn't saying everything that happens in his home.

"Sorry-"

"You don't like them?" Kenji's mom is also a topic usually off limits to which Lambo goes along with.

"Kenji, is there a reason why the sandwiches have Take-nii's popular spicy sauce?"

"It's probably because Yamamoto-san made them for us," Kenji answers with a cheeky grin.

"You-you traitor! You told them where I was?" Lambo puts his hand still holding the sandwich over his heart, an over the top betrayed expression on his face to which Kenji rolls his eyes.

"He stopped me outside - he already knew where you were and thought you'd be hungry. I only brought these candy bars so he told me to wait for some real snacks. He also said to go back when you're ready and that he'd asked your neighbors to leave you alone for a while."

Lambo sighs. He should have known they were aware of his escape when it had all gone smoothly without a search and rescue immediately following.

"Thanks for the message. The one time you're brave enough to converse with my brothers and you turn into their spy."

He grumbles before taking another bite. It isn't the food's fault his family specializes in little brothers' safety.

"I'm not their spy, dummy. I didn't even say anything about where I was going because he still intimidates me but Yamamoto-san figured it out when he saw my candy bars."

"They won't hurt you, you know. You don't have to be scared of them."

Kenji doesn't like talking to people. He's one of the shyest people Lambo knows but thankfully he's comfortable around the youngest Vongola member. That might be due to both of them playing baseball in order to appease their family but Lambo can't help but think there's more to it.

"I know but, you know, I get embarrassed around people."

Lambo finishes his sandwich then his candy bar in silence. He wonders how long it will be until his family finds the man responsible for his misery; when he'll regain some sort of normalcy.

"Don't worry, Lambo. As soon as they find whoever is responsible for the accident everything will go back to normal."

Lambo doesn't bother to disagree. Kenji may not know about his friend's ties with the mafia but the teen is smart enough to know Lambo's family is never to be messed with. There are rumors, of course, but most think them impracticable; can't be real. At least Lambo hopes Kenji agrees.

After several minutes of hanging around, the boys make their way to the Sawada residence but not before thanking and apologizing to the neighbors for the trouble.

They reach the front door just as it bursts open - revealing his brothers in a rush to get out. Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Reborn barely acknowledge their presence as they continue to the car. Tsuna, although he looks hesitant, stops in front of them as he shrugs into his jacket.

"Lambo, there's been an incident with Ryohei. We're on our way over to them to help but I need you to stay here."

"Is he ok?" Lambo asks knowing he shouldn't waste their time especially if Ryohei is in danger but he needs to at least know his brother is still breathing.

"He'll be fine. The others are with him." Tsuna looks conflicted and it's not hard to figure out why. Lambo puts on a small smile before nodding.

"I'll be fine. I promise not to go out and stay out of trouble. Go help Ryo-nii."

Tsuna nods then quickly makes his way to Gokudera's car. Lambo watches them speed away before heading inside with Kenji at his heels. The other teen looks troubled, afraid even, though he tries to hide it. It's not the first time Kenji's witnessed a famiglia emergency but it's getting more difficult to explain why trouble tends to follow Lambo's family.

Tsuna has suggested on several occasions to tell Kenji about their business but each time Lambo refuses. It's difficult enough making friends let alone keep them. Those who don't run away in fear will try and use them for gain and that's something Lambo won't tolerate. He remembers how he was used while with the Bovinos and he will not put his new family through the same thing.

Both teens make it into the living room in silence, making their way to the sofa. Lambo runs a hand down his face, hoping his brothers will be fine.

"Sorry about that, Kenji."

"Don't apologize. I'm just sorry your family can never seem to find some peace and quiet."

"Tell me about it. Did I ever tell you the story where they forgot my birthday because they were so busy worrying over Gokudera who'd gotten jumped by some thugs? He would have been able to take them out by himself but he'd chosen to get drunk that day. Tsuna was furious."

Lambo takes a pause when he thinks he hears a small noise coming from upstairs but continues when nothing follows.

"Those were two weeks of my life I rather not remember. Thankfully Gokudera made it up to me by buying me tons of candy. I probably shouldn't have eaten them all the same night but I like to think it was worth it."

"Let me guess, you got sick?"

"Yup, my mom was not happy," Lambo adds with a grin which quickly fades when he's sure he hears something again from the second floor.

"I know you've had some bad encounters with luck but at least you have a strong family to have your back. I wish I had someone who wouldn't hesitate to come help if I needed it."

Lambo frowns as he quietly stands, "Kenji, you-"

The knock at the door makes him stop, his brothers couldn't be back yet and Mama is still at work. It could be nothing but Lambo trusts his instincts and right now they're saying to not open the door.

" _Delivery for Bovino Lambo,"_ An amused voice announces. " _Oh, wait. It's a scheduled pick-up. We're here for Bovino Lambo."_

Lambo gulps, this isn't good. If there's somebody upstairs and at the door, this was planned. He signals Kenji to be quiet, grabbing the other teen's hand then hurrying to the kitchen. The footsteps are louder now, quickly making their way around the second floor; several footsteps.

"There's probably somebody in the back as well but we'll have to chance it. I'll distract them while you make a run for it. Here," Lambo pulls out his phone from his pocket before quickly silencing it. "Take this and call my brothers once you're far away enough, they'll know what to do."

"Lambo, I can't leave you." Kenji looks terrified but he puts the phone inside his pants pocket.

"I've dealt with this kind of people before, you haven't. Trust me, I can take care of myself but you need to go."

The kitchen door swings open. Two men barge inside holding guns and Lambo knows they're in trouble. Not even five seconds later the rest of the intruders make their way into the kitchen. Five men in total, all looking like they're on a mission. AKA: Bovino Lambo.

"Hey, boss, you know which one's the one we want?"

"Shut it, Miko." Lambo recognizes the boss' voice as the one at the front door. He doesn't appear to be more than the average gangster, not even mafiosi but they all seem caught off guard there are two teens for some reason.

"We weren't expecting two of you. Which one of you is Lambo?"

When neither teen answers the boss growls and approaches them. "I ain't playing games. Which one's Lambo? We won't hurt you as long as you give me some information on a specific weapon. I'm looking for the ten-year bazooka."

Lambo gulps. He hasn't used his bazooka in almost two years but he still has it hidden away in his closet. There's no way he's telling them that, though.

The boss sighs then gives a nod of his head. The youngest of the men walks up to Kenji and punches him in the stomach. The teen groans, grabbing his stomach as he falls to his knees with a cry of pain.

"Stop it!" Lambo tries to get to Kenji but he's grabbed from behind by one of the other guys.

"I don't have time to waste, kids. Which one of you is Lambo?"

Lambo clenches his fists. He knows he's probably going to be in a lot of pain because he isn't going to give them any information but he won't put Kenji through that. He's about to reply when Kenji moans from the floor.

"I-I'm Lambo. I'll tell you what you want just let Kenji go."

"Is that true?"

"Yes, I'm Lambo the Lightning Guardian. Also known as the son of Don Bovino and former member of the Bovino Famiglia - one of the strongest mafia families around. I don't have the bazooka in my possession anymore but I can tell you where to get one. There's an old armory where we store outdated weapons. Leave Kenji here and I swear on my family name I'll take you to them."

Lambo is staring at Kenji with wide eyes filled with shock and confusion. There's no way, how could he...what is going on?

"I'm sorry Kenji, I didn't mean to get you involved," Kenji mutters with a wince.

Before Lambo can respond, one of the guys gags him. He struggles to get lose but somebody hits him from behind. The last thing he sees is Kenji mouthing he's sorry.

* * *

"-ambo? Can you hear me?"

Lambo groans as he slowly regains consciousness. He blinks a few times until his brother's face becomes clear. Tsuna looks as anxious as Lambo feels. Something happened but what?

It all rushes back and Lambo quickly sits up in the sofa, wincing at the pain radiating from his head. He presses a hand to his temple, feeling a large bump and remembers why he must have been knocked out.

"Kenji, they took Kenji!" Lambo tries to stand but fumbles. Tsuna helps steady him then gently guides him back to the sofa.

"Lambo, hold on. You might be suffering from a concussion. Hayato bandaged it for you but you're not well enough to go look for him. Kyoya already has his team out searching along with Reborn, Takeshi, Mukuro, and Chrome. We'll find him."

Lambo tries to process the information he's been given and takes a deep breath. If there's one thing he knows is his family won't stop looking until they find Kenji. His best friend may not believe it but he's been adopted into this family and will be protected as much as Lambo.

"Tsuna-nii, he knows about me."

Tsuna looks confused for a second then sighs, "About you being mafia, you mean."

"Not just that I'm mafia. He knows about the Bovinos and the ten-year bazooka and the Bovino armory. I don't...I don't know how."

"We dug deep into his background but nothing mafia related showed up," Gokudera states as he makes his way to Lambo's side. He hands the teen a glass of water and what appears to be aspirin. "For your headache."

Lambo takes them with a small thanks. "He pretended to be me. They wanted me and he took my place. I couldn't say anything before they had me gagged and out for the count."

"Kenji's a good friend. Lambo, this isn't your fault. If anything it's mine for leaving you alone. The whole situation with Ryohei was a trap to get us to leave you. It seems you were the intended target after all but we're not sure why."

"The bazooka. They knew about the ten-year bazooka and wanted me to tell them where to get one. Kenji might know about the armory but nobody but Bovino top men know where it is. He's going to get killed. This is a total disaster!"

"Have a little faith in your family, stupid cow. We'll find him."

Lambo knows there's nothing else he can do but trust his family. He leans back into the cushions, trying to figure out where Kenji might have taken them when he remembers his phone. He shoots up in his seat making to stand but Tsuna's firm hand keeps him in place.

"I gave him my phone! I was going to distract the bastards and have him call you for help after getting away."

He's not done explaining but Gokudera is already logging into his smartphone, looking for the location of Lambo's phone.

"Lambo, you're not ok enough to be running into danger. I can't rule out a concussion and I know your ankle still bothers you a bit even though you try to hide it. The others will bring him back but I'll be staying here with you."

"Tsuna-nii, I'm not waiting here. Kenji thinks he doesn't have anyone who would rush to his side if he's in trouble. I'm going to prove him wrong and you can't stop me. Please, don't try to stop me."

Tsuna hesitates for only a second then nods. "Fine, we'll show him he has our whole family looking out for him. But you are not to leave my side, is that understood?"

Lambo nods just as Gokudera's phone pings the location of the device. Tsuna helps Lambo stand and together along with Gokudera make their way to the car.

"Don't worry, Kenji. We're on our way."

* * *

Kenji tries to control his breathing through the pain. If this is what Lambo went through each time he went back to school with a bruise or two then he didn't envy him at all. He can only hope he gets a chance to talk with Lambo and apologize for keeping what he knew a secret.

When he'd first started hearing the rumors about Lambo's family, he wasn't sure any of it could be true. He hadn't paid attention to the Bovino kid until they both ended up on the same baseball team. After that, he slowly began noticing the bruises and scratches on his friend along with how many times he was absent from school.

Kenji knew there might be some truth to the rumors and began investigating on his own. He may be the quietest kid in class but that meant he listened. Not only that but he was also great at researching any topic or any person when he wanted to. It wasn't easy when it came to Lambo and it had left him shaking in fear a few times but he finally understood his friend a bit more.

He would have told Lambo but he figured there was a reason why the former Bovino member didn't want him to know. If he had been as close to Lambo before as he was now then he wouldn't have even investigated but what's done is done.

"Lambo, I don't think all this pain is worth it, do you? From what I heard, your family didn't want you anyway. I don't understand why you won't tell us where this armory is as some kind of payback to them."

"Because I'm...not a snitch." He mumbles as best as he can with what he knows is a swollen tongue. The copper taste in his mouth lets him know he was probably missing a tooth or two as well. Or maybe he'd just bit his tongue more times than he thought.

They were currently on a bridge outside of the city, the boss pinning Kenji against the edge. He could hear the roar of the water below; sending a shiver through his being.

"We can always get what we want another way but we were hoping you'd make this easier for us. Last chance, Lambo. Where is the armory?"

"I don't know."

"Wrong answer, Bovino."

Kenji could swear everything happens in slow motion after that. He feels the boss's hands on his chest as he's pushed over the bridge. He tries to grab on but his fingers only manage to graze the edge as he falls back. His eyes widen as fear takes over.

' _I'm going to die.'_

He screams but that doesn't last long. His body hits the water hard, taking whatever air he had left out of his lungs. It's ironic, he thinks. He dies just when he's finally willing to live.

His arms are swinging wildly, thrashing against the water as he struggles to find a way to the surface. His chest is burning, he can't see anything but blurry lights, and his body feels as heavy as lead.

" _Lambo, thank you for being my friend."_

He screams once more. Only this time, he feels the water invade his mouth, rushing down his throat. He tries to cough but more water fills his lungs which feel like they're about to explode. He doesn't stop fighting the strong current which seems to be holding him tightly now but he can feel his body shutting down.

Kenji doesn't fade into unconsciousness like drowning people do in movies. No, it's painful and terrifying until it all just suddenly stops. He'd have to remember to write a letter to the movie makers with this complaint. Oh, right. He's about to die.

* * *

"Tsuna-nii, he can't die. He's not just my best friend, he's my only normal friend outside of the mafia. He keeps me normal. He can't die, Tsuna-nii, he just can't!" Lambo knows that's a selfish reason but he needs Kenji just as much as he needs Lambo.

Lambo continues to cry into Tsuna's shoulder as Gokudera continues CPR with Ryohei doing compressions. Hibari and the others have taken care of the gangsters, making sure none would be eating anything but liquids for months.

Yamamoto is still kneeling next to Kenji, clothes soaked from having dived in after the teen. He had pulled Kenji out of the water, not breathing. Lambo would never forget the sight. His friend was pale with tints of blue tarnishing his face. He was so still and it terrified him.

"Come on, Kenji. Breathe, damn it." Gokudera grows angrily as he gives Kenji some more air. Lambo doesn't want to see this, he doesn't want to see his best friend die but he doesn't have the heart to look away. Kenji is here because of him. The least he can do is stay by his side even if it comes to the worst possible outcome. Thankfully, though, it doesn't.

Kenji coughs and Lambo swears it's the most beautiful sound he's ever heard. Gokudera quickly flips the teen to his side, rubbing circles on his back as the teen continues to cough water up.

Once he seems to be out of water to cough out, Gokudera sits him up but stays behind the teen just in case. Lambo rushes to his best friend and hugs him as tightly as he can.

"You're so stupid! How could you have done that? You could have died and it would have been my fault for not protecting you, you idiot!"

"Lambo, I can't...breathe."

Lambo immediately backs away but manages a small laugh when he sees Kenji offer him a smile.

"You came for me?" Lambo's sure his friend still doesn't believe they're here even now and he can't understand why.

"You're so stupid…" Lambo repeats as he wipes his eyes. "Of course we came and we didn't hesitate either. You're part of our family but that doesn't mean you need to get hurt as much as we do."

"You're my best friend. I didn't want to see you go to school with more bruises." Kenji says softly, laying his head against Gokudera's chest without thinking. He immediately tries to move but the smoke bomber gently pulls him back without a word.

Tsuna joins Lambo and smiles at the smaller teen. "How are you feeling?"

Kenji looks at his hands as he answers, "O-ok. Thank you for saving me." He mumbles.

"Takeshi is the one who jumped in after you and brought you out of the water. Hayato and Ryohei brought you back from wherever you were running off to."

Kenji looks to the side where Yamamoto is smiling at him, completely drenched but otherwise ok. "Thank you, Yamamoto-san."

"I'm glad you're ok, Kenji."

The teen then looks towards Ryohei and offers the same gratitude. The boxer stands and walks over before crouching down.

"It was nothing. I'm just glad we got to you in time." Ryohei pulls off his jacket and carefully drapes it around the boy who tries to refuse but is ignored. Kenji takes it with thanks and wraps the bigger jacket tightly around his shivering body.

"Can you stand?"

Kenji tenses, forgetting there's still someone behind him. He nods and Gokudera helps him up. "Tha-thank you so much for your help, Gokudera-san."

"Tsk, just don't make it a habit."

"That's his way of saying you're welcome, please don't mind him." Tsuna offers warmly with a slight glare towards his right-hand man who has the decency to look embarrassed.

"Yeah, Haya-nii can sound like a total jerk but he means well most of the time," Lambo adds with a grin.

"Oi, stupid cow, don't start with me."

"See what I mean? Come on, let's get you home and into dry clothes."

"Um, I don't want my mom to see me like this. Would it be ok to drop me off at school? I have some extra clothes there."

Lambo frowns. Why would he have extra clothes at school? "When I said home I meant our home. It's your home too, you know?"

Kenji lowers his head, wiping his eyes on Ryohei's jacket as he tries to contain the swirl of emotions coursing through his body. "Thank you so much."

"Kenji, you're always welcomed. Our doors are always open for you, don't forget that." Tsuna says from where he's putting his own jacket over Yamamoto.

"But I'm not even family."

"Yes, you are. We don't just go off rescuing people we don't like."

"I thought that was what Vongola was about?" He asks quietly.

"We'll talk more once we get home. Is that ok?"

The teens both agree with Tsuna and begin to walk to their car when Ryohei steps in front of Kenji. The teen tenses again and Lambo wishes he wouldn't.

"I want to tell you something. What you did today was extremely brave. You saved Lambo and you risked your life in the process. You're a fighter and in this family, we all have to fight every now and then but we always give our all. Here,"

Kenji timidly looks up and watches as Ryohei takes off his necklace. His eyes widen when he realizes it's the boxing glove necklace Lambo had mentioned before.

"Sasagawa-san, I can't accept this. I know how important these are to you."

"These boxing gloves were a gift from a very special teacher. Each time I feel down, I hold them in my hand and remember that I've gone through hell and back and can still keep going. I want you to have them to remind you that you can do the same."

Ryohei carefully puts the necklace around Kenji's neck and softly pats the boy's shoulder. "This is also proof you are an EXTREME member of our family. Always remember that."

Lambo watches the scene with pride and love for his family. They've proven themselves to Kenji even though they didn't have to and made him feel more than just welcomed, they made him feel loved. Probably in a way his own mother never showed him.

"Guys, he's _my_ best friend. Will you stop trying to recruit him as a spy against me?"

"Haha! You sound jealous, Lambo."

"Me? Never! You're all so damn annoying, he can have you guys."

"Lambo, you're EXTREMELY stuck with us!" Ryohei shouts before thumping Lambo in the back. The youngest Vongola tumbles forward but Tsuna manages to stop him from falling over.

"Ryo-nii, my head still hurts."

"Stop making it worse, Turf-top!"

"Sorry, Lambo!"

Kenji watches as the brothers begin arguing over who's driving and who's riding passenger seat. He knows he's going to have to explain how he knows about Vongola but he thinks they'll give him some time to recover before any questioning starts. Although, he does have a question of his own.

"Um, excuse me?"

Tsuna is the only one who seems to hear him since the others are too busy shouting at each other. "Yes, Kenji?"

"Uh, what happened to um, the guys that took me?" He asks embarrassedly.

"My Mist Guardians Chrome and Mukuro are taking care of them with Kyoya and Reborn. They won't bother you again, that I promise."

People have promised him things before but when Tsuna did it, it sent a shiver down his back. Tsuna's eyes had gone from chocolate brown to amber and it made Kenji believe him. This is the Vongola Tenth that he'd heard so much about.

"Thank you, Sawada-san."

"Please call me Tsuna, it saves us the trouble of clarifying when my parents are around."

"A-alright. Thank you, Tsuna-san."

Tsuna smiles then frowns when Lambo lets out a curse. "Lambo, your mouth!"

"But Tsuna-nii, Stupidera hit me!"

"Hayato, don't hit him while he's injured."

"I didn't, Juudaime! Lambo, you stupid cow, you're going to pay for that once you're cleared."

They get in the car and Kenji can't help but feel comfortable within the chaos that is Lambo's family.

"They're your family now as well." Lambo grins from his left.

"Did I say that out loud?" Kenji asks his face as red as a tomato.

"You didn't have to. I'm glad you're ok, Kenji, but if you ever do something that stupid again I'll be mad for reals. This could have ended in a bigger disaster and I rather we avoid those."

Kenji laughs but stops when his chest aches. "I'll try to remember that. Thank you, Lambo, for everything." He says before closing his eyes against his will.

He doesn't hear Lambo reply, "Thank you for everything too."

* * *

And cut! This started differently than I had planned but ended, well, different as well. Lol, I wanted to add Kenji because I love the kid and have plans for him as a minor character to help Lambo out when none of the other Vongola teens are around. I'm sure they'll meet each other one day, though.

Thank you for those still reading this story. I haven't given up on it and have other chapters already in motion. I won't let my life distract me as much as it has but obviously, I can't make any promises but I will post more frequently.

As always, thank you so much for your reviews in advance! Please let me know you're still here!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	5. E is for Engaged

Welcome to Lambo's Corner! Here's another chapter in my crazy ABC's series which I hope you enjoy. I figured I'd give Lambo a rest from so much whump and this happened.

As always, thank you all so much for the lovely reviews, they keep me going! Let me know what you think!

Warning: Same as the previous chapter.

Disclaimer: I still don't own.

* * *

"Eek!"

Lambo raises his head at the sound coming from the kitchen with a raised eyebrow. Haru, Kyoko, Chrome, Bianchi, and I-Pin have been in there helping Nana prepare dinner but all they could be heard doing is gossiping about a celebrity couple who had recently gotten married. The Vongola females were going on and on about the dresses, the food, the guests, the decorations and everything else involved as if they'd been there.

For the first time in a long time, Lambo is actually trying to study (not because he wants to) but how do they expect him to focus if they keep squealing and gasping at the celebrity scandals?

"Haru, you're a grown woman, you know what happens on someone's wedding night."

Lambo makes a face at Bianchi's comment. This is why he'd wanted to go with Tsuna and the others on the latest mission - to avoid embarrassing girl talk. Unfortunately for him, he had fallen behind on some homework which means he is confined to the living room to finish as punishment.

He's old enough to know about the birds and the bees but this is ridiculous. He doesn't even talk about this with his brothers because the topic still freaks him out so why can't the girls show some compassion to his burning ears? As if mom giving him the talk hadn't been bad enough.

"And you know Lita is going to be a freak in bed. I remember her ex-boyfriend mentioned in an interview how limber and experimental she was." Kyoko says with a laugh.

"Neh, Kyoko-chan, maybe you could pick up some tips for-"

"Bianchi!" The other girls sound as flustered as he does but then they all laugh and giggle. Seriously, they _know_ he's there listening to their conversation. Do they really not care? He hides his heated face in his hands. This could not get any more awkward.

"I remember my wedding night with Lemitsu. It was terrible but I will never forget it." Nana adds with a sigh.

Alright, that's it. Lambo stands quickly and heads for the door. "I'ma go buy some bleach for my ears. I'll be right back!"

Lambo shuts the door on the laughter coming from inside with a grimace. Women, they were terrible to live with. There was no way in hell he would ever get attached to one. Blech, he'd go crazy if he was to ever marry.

He walks down the street to the closest sweets shop near his home. The sky is mostly clear with only a few clouds floating around. People are walking by looking content and Lambo can't help but feel happy as well. He's still not entirely onboard with being left behind whenever his siblings head to Italy but he loves Namimori. Not as much as his psychotic brother but the normal amount of love.

The teen opens the door, the sound of a small bell announcing his arrival. The first thing Lambo notices is the smell of freshly made chocolate. The rich aroma makes Lambo take a deep breath, a smile forming on his face.

"Ah, Lambo. Welcome back!" The candy artisan waves to the teen.

"Good afternoon, Honda-san. I can smell some delicious mint flavored chocolate already." Lambo greets with a wave of his own as he makes his way to the counter.

Jacko Honda is one of Lambo's favorite people in the world. The man had just turned twenty-five but he was already the successful owner of a popular chain of candy shops in Japan. This particular shop is the newest which is why he's currently working here. He won't leave until his employees can carry on without his help.

Lambo is his best customer which comes as a surprise to no one. Tsuna and the others had stopped by a few times to thank Jacko for his hospitality towards Lambo since the teen spend a lot of his time here. In fact, every time he passed a test or project at school, the candy artisan rewarded the youngest Vongola with a mouthwatering treat.

"I'm sure you can. I just made a fresh batch of mint chocolate pops so you're just in time to try one."

The man hands the sweet to Lambo who accepts it with a large smile and thanks. Lambo looks at the chocolate pop sprinkled with green and takes a small bite wanting to savor its flavor.

"Hmm, this is exquisite, Honda-san."

"I see you're still under Reborn-san's tutelage." The man chuckles.

Lambo pouts, "Clearly. I can't shut off my brain sometimes and I'm sure he's behind it."

"Well, at least your grades are improving. Keep up the good work, get into a university, and get a successful job so you can one day support a family."

Lambo chokes on his pop, coughing and thumping his chest. His face is a bright red when he turns to glare at the man who until now had been his favorite person.

"Honda-san, that's gross. I'm never getting married and I'm undeniably staying single. Females do nothing but cause trouble."

"Like you're one to talk." Jacko laughs.

"Yeah, yeah. I should be heading back home if I want to beat my brothers so I'll see you later, Honda-san. Thank you for the pop."

"Try not to break too many hearts, Lambo."

Lambo shakes his head with a sigh. Why had his day been filled with talks about marriage? Whatever, he is too young to be thinking about such dreadful topics.

Dreadful? Lambo really needed to stop paying attention to Reborn otherwise his classmates will start making fun of him.

He begins to head home when he feels the unmistakable feeling of somebody running towards him. Lambo quickly moves to the side just as a figure rushes past him; a young girl about his age with shoulder-length blonde hair wearing a school uniform.

Wait, that's his school uniform. The girl turns to apologize and recognition fills her eyes.

"Bovino-kun? Oh my, how lucky am I to run into you of all people?"

"Sasaki-kun, are you ok?" Lambo nervously asks his classmate who looks flustered and worried. Sasaki Nina is a girl in his class who usually hangs around the popular kids which means Lambo rarely speaks with her. That doesn't mean he'd just abandon her if she needs some sort of assistance.

"I will be if you to do me a big, big favor. I promise it's nothing serious and you just have to help me this once."

Lambo knows better than to agree to anything without knowing all the facts. Experience has taught him how stupid and irresponsible that could be.

"Um, what is it?"

"I need you to pretend you're my boyfriend."

Of all the possible favors Lambo could think she'd ask for, this is not one of them. The teen blinks then frowns, "Wait, what?"

* * *

An hour and a half later, Lambo walks inside his home and takes off his shoes in silence. He can hear his family in the kitchen laughing and wonders why he's the one to usually sour their mood because that's what's about to happen.

He practically drags his feet into the room and holds back a groan at seeing a full house. With the exception of the Mystic Duo and Monster of Namimori, everyone else is there. His brothers and the girls are laughing at a story Ryohei is telling and nobody even notices him standing at the entrance. Nana is the first to see him and motions him to the table.

"I saved you a plate, Lambo."

The others stop talking and greet their youngest with smiles. Boy, is this going to be awkward...

Lambo pulls out the chair next to I-Pin and sits between his friend and Tsuna. Nana serves him his food then the table continues with their conversation.

"Lambo, are you ok? You seem troubled."

I-Pin can always tell something's wrong and he shakes his head. "I am. I did something stupid and now my life is ruined."

The young girl frowns and grabs his left hand to offer some comfort when she notices a new ring on his hand. Her eyes widen at its location and shakes her head. "Lambo is that-"

She doesn't get to finish her sentence when Gokudera interrupts their whispering. "Oi, did you finish your homework, brat?"

The table quiets down, each member of his family looks towards him and Lambo feels like throwing up.

"Lambo, are you ok?" Tsuna asks with a slight frown.

Lambo stands, knowing he needs to get this over with. "Tsuna-nii, I'm engaged."

Silence.

Then laughter. Lambo's mouth drops open at the scene. He'd just told his family he's engaged and they're laughing?

"Nice one, Lambo. Next time just say you didn't finish your assignments." Yamamoto wipes at his eyes.

"Am I invited to the wedding? I will be EXTREMELY hurt if I'm not."

Even Ryohei is laughing at his situation. Lambo groans, why does this always happen to him?

"Um, I do not think he is kidding." I-Pin raises his left hand with a tight grip making Lambo wince, the gold ring shining under the light. Everyone stares, not quite sure it's real. Then, as if orchestrated, they all stand at the same time with a loud, "What?!"

"Lambo, what in the world?"

"How did this happen?"

"Lambo-chan, who?"

"Oh, my!"

"Is she real?"

They all turn to Gokudera with a frown. The smoke bomber raises his hands, "What? There's no way he's engaged to a real person."

"Lambo, sweetie, why didn't you tell us you were dating someone?" Nana asks with a slight tremble in her voice. She looks like she's on the verge of a crying attack.

Lambo can't believe his ears. Do they not know him well enough? He'd never be caught dead dating.

"I would like to know that as well." I-Pin looks furious and Lambo figures she's upset because she thinks she was left out of something important.

"Is she pregnant?"

The gasps around the table could probably be heard down the street. They all turn to Gokudera once more who looks confused. "What now? Why else would he be getting married so young? What the fuck, stupid?"

"Hayato, not now." Tsuna sits down, rubbing his temples to try and stop a migraine he knows is coming.

"Lambo, I thought I explained how to keep yourself protected."

The teen can feel his face go crimson with embarrassment at his mom's comment. I-Pin looks down at the lap then stands. "I think this is a conversation for you to handle. I will be heading home now."

"I-Pin, don't leave me alon-"

"You are not alone if you managed to impregnate someone. Goodbye." She's seething and Lambo wonders what the hell her problem is. He's the one who's engaged, for crying out loud.

"I think we'll be leaving as well. This is something you need to talk about in private. Please let us know if we can do anything to help."

Kyoko, Haru, and Bianchi leave along with Yamamoto, Ryohei, and Gokudera; leaving Tsuna and Nana alone to deal with the troubled teen.

Nana begins to weep as she clears the table. "Mom, it's not like that. I promise it's not like that."

"Lambo,"

The teen turns to Tsuna and shrinks back a little when he sees the amber in his big brother's eyes. Tsuna rarely gets mad but when he does...Lambo knows better than to make it worse.

"Why didn't you tell us you were seeing someone?"

"I'm not! I only met her a few times in school but we aren't even friends."

Nana drops a plate into the sink. "She wasn't even an official girlfriend? Oh, Lambo." She cries harder.

"Mom, please listen to what I'm saying. She's nobody to me."

"I thought you were more responsible than this. Lambo, I don't even know how many times we told you that, uh, you weren't ready for sex. Pregnancy is one of the biggest consequences. You're just a kid, Lambo. What were you thinking?"

Lambo feels like crying from embarrassment and from anger. How could they think he'd go and do something with someone he barely knows? He's too busy and too young to even think about the opposite sex.

"I can't believe this. You guys actually think I'd go and get someone pregnant?" Lambo has his hands clenched into tight fists, obviously shaking. He's about to walk away and Tsuna knows it.

Tsuna also notices the hurt in his brother's eyes and forces himself to take a deep breath. Getting angry and scaring his brother will do nothing to better the situation. He needs to understand what happened in order to help Lambo. God help them if there's an actual baby on the way but he'd figure that out later.

"Sit down and tell me everything."

"Why bother? It's not like you're going to believe me anyway."

"Damn it, Lambo. Sit down and tell me what happened."

Lambo slowly sits back down, trying his best to ignore the silent cries of his mom.

"I'm not sure how it happened, to be honest. One minute I'm eating a chocolate pop then I'm being asked to help a classmate. I never even said yes, Tsuna-nii. Lambo said no! The next thing Lambo knows, he's being dragged into a limousine by some strange men and Sasaki-kun is pleading to her father for mercy and then Lambo's wearing this stupid ring with no idea how to get out of it. Lambo said no!"

Lambo grabs a glass of water from the table not caring whose it is and finishes it. He's shaking as he speaks and Tsuna knows his brother is terrified when he begins talking about himself in the third person.

"Sasaki-san thought Lambo was his daughter's boyfriend who has evidently been sneaking into her room during the weekends. Sasaki-kun panicked and didn't want her father to kill her actual boyfriend so she lied and told him Lambo was him. Her dad was about to filet Lambo but Sasaki-kun told him Lambo was willing to marry her."

Lambo wipes his nose as tears begin to fall. "Sasaki's dad immediately took us to a jeweler and made us get engagement rings right away but Lambo doesn't want to get married. Lambo doesn't even like girls yet! Now Lambo has to get married, go to work and never have fun again. Lambo is scared Tsuna-nii, Lambo said no and he still has to get married."

Tsuna listens intently but Lambo isn't sure what his brother is thinking until Tsuna wraps his arms around his shoulders. "Shh, Lambo. I'm sorry. I'm sorry I yelled but you really scared me tonight. I should have listened to what you had to say first. I'm sorry."

" _Lambo's_ sorry, he didn't even know what was happening until they dropped Lambo off. Lambo really doesn't want to get married."

"Oh, Lambo," Nana hugs her son and cries along with him leaving Tsuna to sigh at the scene. He had nearly had a heart attack thinking Lambo might have gotten someone pregnant but he should have known better. His baby brother still thinks girls have cooties after all.

"Don't worry, Lambo. I'll take care of it."

Lambo wipes his nose on his sleeve. "You-you promise?"

Tsuna smiles then fondly ruffles Lambo's hair. "I promise. Go ahead and eat something while I figure out how to deal with Sasaki."

"Ok, thanks Tsuna-nii." He says between sobs.

Tsuna leaves his baby brother with his mom, stepping outside as he dials a familiar number on his phone. It only rings twice before his brother answers.

"Kyoya, do you know Sasaki Mathew? He's the man in charge of...oh, good. We need to pay him a visit first thing in the morning."

* * *

Lambo walks into _Sweet Nothings_ with a huge smile on his face. Upon arriving at school this morning, Sasaki Nina had run to him apologizing for the previous day's scare and promised she would never bother him again.

Tsuna had taken the ring last night with the promise of returning it to Sasaki-san personally. After school, Tsuna had picked him up and taken him for some ice cream as an apology for his behavior to which Lambo had waved off. The teen knows how scared everyone had been, himself included.

As they ate their ice cream, Tsuna had told him how scared Sasaki had been to see him and Hibari walk into his office. Nobody had known what to do. Tsuna had warned him to stay away from his brother or else there would be consequences and Hibari had given him an example of said consequences. According to Tsuna, the businessman would need another office.

The girls had texted him to let him know they were glad everything was ok and thankfully the guys hadn't teased him about the whole ordeal. They must have either been threatened my Nana or were aware of how terrifying the situation had been for Lambo. I-Pin had apologized for not hearing him out and promised to trust him better. Lambo still isn't sure why she had gotten so upset but what mattered now is that they were ok again.

"Welcome back, Lambo. How was school?"

"Honda-san, you don't want to know."

The man shakes his head knowing Lambo has some crazy adventures and he really doesn't need to know. Jacko hands him a new treat then snaps his fingers.

"I almost forgot. After our talk yesterday, I came up with a new treat just for you. Here, let me go get it."

Lambo takes a seat at a nearby table, chewing on his hard candy when a poster catches his eye. He stands to get a closer look and feels faint. There on the poster is a lollipop shaped like an engagement ring.

"Here you go, Lambo."

The teen turns with a frown. He looks from the poster to the treat then back to the poster. "Honda-san, why?"

"When you left I kept thinking how cute it was for you to think you'd never fall in love and I got a couple of ideas. I'm sure the lollipops will sell to couples but this one is just for you. It's a laffy taffy engagement ring but look inside of it."

Lambo doesn't want to touch another ring in his life so he tilts his head to the side and notices there's writing inside - _'Lambo said no'_ in bold letters.

"I kept imagining you getting married while repeating no and I-Lambo, where are you going?"

Lambo runs out of the candy shop. Lambo had definitely said no and he would undoubtedly never say yes. Probably.

* * *

Well, that must have been awkward for poor little Lambo. lol No whump but I'm sure Lambo's swearing off from ever marrying. Let me know your thoughts! Your lovely reviews are motivating me to continue!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	6. F is for Fallout

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

This one's a bit on the long side but I really hope you enjoy it. Thank you as always for the kind reviews. Fi Suki Saki, ilovecartoonsgirl, silkie 19, and D C JoKeR H S for reviewing the last chapter.

This chapter is for all you beautiful people that make my day with each review. Please keep motivating me!

Warnings: Language and typical mafia behavior. As always, it's probably filled with mistakes which I will go over at a later time. Thanks, Grammarly for not letting me post a complete mess.

Without further ado, F is for...

* * *

 **Fallout: the adverse side effects or results of a situation.**

It's ironic, Lambo thinks. Just two weeks ago he had been learning about war and its consequences at school. Now, he was involved in a war of his own. If he'd known he'd be staying in a tense environment, Lambo would never have decided to visit Italy during his school break.

The thirteen-year-old had arrived two days ago but has yet to spend any time with his family. They were all busy with their latest mission and he had been smart enough to not get in their way. In fact, they hadn't even met him at the airport. He'd called and when nobody had answered, he'd taken a cab to the estate. Tsuna had been surprised to see him and after apologizing had gone back to work. He's sure they've forgotten he's here considering they haven't checked on him or made sure he's had anything to eat since then. Not that he needs them, he's old enough to take care of himself.

He listens to his brothers argue from where he's sat at the kitchen table with trepidation. Of all his brothers, Yamamoto is the one least likely to argue about, well, anything. He'll mostly go along with what anybody says as long as it's not a big deal or interferes with his plans for the day which is why Lambo feels nervous at the moment. He can hear them shouting upstairs without even trying to listen.

Vongola has been keeping an eye on some weapon dealings happening in the next town over and it seems children are now being targeted as possible clients. Three days ago, a boy of only ten years had killed a classmate over a skateboard. A skateboard! The police had discovered the boy had purchased the gun from a man with a scythe tattoo on his right hand, who was selling them near his school.

By the time they'd concluded their search, no man had been found but they knew it was connected to the recent spike in gun violence. After conducting their own investigation, Gokudera could now say for certain it was another famiglia who was responsible. They just didn't know which one.

Of course, Lambo isn't supposed to know any of this but Ryohei keeps leaving files out in the open.

The teen finishes his breakfast before quickly washing his dishes and puts them away. He begins to head to the living room to watch some tv when he hears a door open then slam shut above him. The heavy and rushed footsteps heading down the stairs causing him to run back into the kitchen to hide. He's not doing anything wrong but the last thing he wants is to end up on the end of a brother's bad mood.

The door upstairs opens again and Lambo winces at the anger in Gokudera's voice. "Don't you dare run away, you bastard! Get your fucking ass back here!"

"I'm not running away. I'm going on patrol to think without your annoying voice telling me what to do."

"I swear if you walk out that door I'm going to-"

"To what? Are you going to send me on a suicide mission like Haruto?"

Lambo dares to glance around the side and sees Gokudera practically jump down the last steps before grabbing Yamamoto by the collar of his shirt.

"Say that again you piece of shit." The smoke bomber growls. Lambo has seen them argue before but never had he seen them look the way they do now. Both of them were tense, their eyes held fury and...hate? No, there is no way they could hate each other but there is certainly a strong dislike at the moment.

"Enough!"

Lambo presses his back against the wall immediately at his brother's voice. Tsuna doesn't rush down the stairs like his other brothers but the anger is radiating from his being in waves which should have been enough to stop anyone but not the two idiots it seems.

"Haruto would still be alive if it hadn't been for you." Yamamoto doesn't shout but his words don't need the extra volume to not only be heard but felt.

The youngest member feels his heart skip a beat. Haruto's dead? The twenty-year-old man had only been with Vongola for about a year but he'd earned his spot in this famiglia with his actions of bravery and had proven his loyalty over that time. Lambo may not have known him too well but he liked him. Haruto always gave him candy and never seemed to be without a smile. That was probably why Yamamoto had gotten along so well with the man.

Lambo isn't looking but he hears the impact of skin against skin. There's a grunt of pain then a crash as somebody smashes against something.

"Guys, stop!"

The remaining footsteps follow Ryohei's anxious voice but Lambo is petrified to his spot. He can hear the blows, the way his brothers are hurting each other and he's afraid. He remembers when he was with the Bovinos, they'd fight this way all the time then end up hurting him for fun. He'd seen his brothers fight enough times to know they can cause damage but they'd never do that to a fellow brother, not like the Bovinos. At least, they hadn't before today.

"Knock it off!"

The commotion stops but not the curses and Lambo figures his brothers are being held back. Gokudera and Yamamoto are really tearing into one another and Lambo has never felt so scared. They were seriously trying to hurt each other.

"I can see why your famiglia didn't want you!"

"You should have jumped down that roof when you had the chance!"

Lambo is breathing too fast. He knows if he doesn't calm down he's going to hyperventilate and will draw the attention of the others but he's having a hard time breathing. His fists are clenched to the sides, eyes watering but refusing to close for fear of getting caught. Irrational, he knows but he feels like any little movement will give away his position and Lambo knows he doesn't want them to know he's there.

The sound of a slap echoes through the large room followed by another. There is silence but the tension is so thick Lambo thinks he can feel it trying to suffocate him.

"Both of you. In my office. Now."

Lambo has never heard Tsuna sound this livid towards any of them. Thankfully both of his raging brothers are smart enough to not continue arguing. The teen can hear footsteps heading up the stairs then Tsuna speaks once more.

"Ryohei, I need you and Mukuro to meet up with Kyoya and Chrome. They should be finished at the warehouse and with the interrogations. Let me know what they've found."

"Tsuna,"

"I'll take care of it. Go."

The door opens then closes and Lambo is terrified to breathe. It should only be Tsuna and Reborn left; the teen knows any noise will give him away.

"What are you going to do?" Reborn asks and Lambo can imagine the hitman rubbing his pacifier as he tends to do without realizing.

A sigh, "I don't know. This case has gotten everyone riled up but now with Haruto gone…"

"If you're expecting sympathy from me you're wasting your time. He knew what he signed up for, we all did."

"Reborn, do me a favor and try to act like you know what compassion means. I'll handle my guardians so go and follow-up with Dino, please. He said he'd look into the man with the scythe tattoo. He said Haruto described him before he died; go find out if there's any new information."

Lambo hears Reborn leave before Tsuna heads back upstairs. The teen finally releases the cry he's been holding and covers his face as the tears stream down his face. He knows there will always be death in the mafia but Tsuna does everything in his power to avoid it as much as possible.

" _I forgot Tsuna-nii isn't God. He can't stop death completely."_

After calming down, he heads out himself. He knows he won't be comfortable with his brothers fighting and it's not like they'll miss him. Not when they have so much going on. He walks to the local park knowing it shouldn't be too busy since it is a school day. He needs to process what he's heard and be able to mourn in peace.

Once he reaches the park, he sits on a bench away from the general public. He rests his head against the back, closing his eyes as he sends a small prayer for Haruto. Lambo may not have been close to him but he hopes the man didn't suffer.

" _Hey,"_

Lambo jumps at the sudden voice, getting to his feet in a flash. Damn, he'd been distracted and hadn't even noticed the person approach. It's a kid, probably a little younger than himself and should definitely be in school but Lambo knows trouble when he sees it. The kid is speaking in Italian which Lambo speaks fluently thanks to Reborn.

" _Hi, I'm Leo. What's your name?"_

Lambo shakes the hand the kid offers with suspicion but mama would be disappointed if he didn't show any manners.

" _Lambo."_

For about thirty minutes, Leo talks to Lambo about Italy after the teen tells him he's visiting. They talk about places to see, food to try and how much fun he can have. It's not until Lambo mentions needing to get back that the boy gets serious.

" _I noticed you were crying earlier. Are you ok?"_

" _Just some family drama but I'll be ok."_

The eleven-year-old nods in understanding. " _I had family drama too but my friend helped me take care of it."_

The chill that goes down his spine sets Lambo on high alert. There's something in the boy's voice that makes him look older than he really is and Lambo knows he should get away but he doesn't.

" _How?"_

" _My friend, he's really good at making people change. My dad hit mom and me a lot until my friend talked to him. Sometimes you need to scare someone for them to change, that's what my friend said. He showed my dad a gun and beat him up real good with it. He told him if I complained about him once more, he'd kill him. I wasn't sure that would work so I bought a gun from him and now I don't have to worry if it does happen."_

Lambo feels his mouth go dry. How could a kid be talking like this? " _You-you own a gun?"_

Leo nods with a smile. He pulls his backpack off and Lambo is afraid to see what's inside - he tries not to show it. There, nicely tucked between some notebooks is a gun. It looks small but it's terrifying. Lambo knows its size doesn't matter, it will easily kill anyone with the pull of its trigger.

" _Isn't it great? I can do what I want and nobody will say anything once I show them this."_

Lambo feels sick. Is this how people saw guns? A simple way to get rid of those they didn't like? He's about to say he needs to go again when somebody shouts Leo's name.

" _What are you doing, Leo? I told you not to show that off unless you were going to kill them."_

" _It's ok, Billy. Lambo has some family problems he'd like taken care of so I offered to help."_

Lambo is frozen in his spot. Billy, tall and lanky with greasy hair looks like one of the thugs back in Namimori which normally wouldn't scare him but the tattoo on his right-hand does; a scythe. Is this what had his brothers so upset? Had the man they were looking for reached their hometown?

" _Is this true, Lambo?"_

Lambo doesn't remember saying yes but Billy keeps talking as if he agreed. The older man smiles and motions for the kids to follow. Leo goes without hesitation but Lambo isn't sure what to do. If he runs, he's sure he'll get shot in the back before he makes it far but if he plays along he might live a little longer.

Deciding to prolong his death, he follows. He looks around hoping somebody can see his dilemma but the few people there aren't even looking in his direction. This man, Billy, is the one responsible for Haruto's death. He's the one who took his friend away from this world.

" _What kind of problems is your family giving you, kid?"_

" _Uh, they fight. A lot. They're always fighting and um, they hit me too. I'm always scared they're going to kill me."_

Technically he isn't lying which is why he knows he sounds believable. Billy shakes his head as if upset at his problems.

" _I hate that kids have to suffer so much with the people who are supposed to be protecting them. Don't worry, I have the perfect gun for you. I just tested it last night."_

Lambo isn't sure what's going to happen but he knows he needs to be careful. The last thing he wants is to join Haruto so soon and without his brothers even knowing what happened. Hopefully he's able to see his family once more to yell at them for putting him in this situation in the first place.

* * *

It's midnight when Lambo makes it to the estate. He'd taken a cab, stopping at several locations in case he'd been followed but nobody had. He slowly opens the door, cautiously stepping inside. The estate is quiet which isn't surprising given the time but after today's fallout, he was expecting somebody up at least.

He walks up the stairs, wanting nothing more than to take a shower before going to bed but he needs to talk to his brother as soon as possible. Lambo begins to head to Tsuna's room but hushed voices coming from his older brother's office cause him to change directions.

The teen can make out several voices and wonders if they're still angry. He hates to interrupt but this is important. With a deep breath, he raises his hand and knocks. The voices immediately stop then footsteps can be heard approaching the door.

When it opens, Lambo is surprised to see the Chiavarone right-hand man. "Romario-san?"

Apparently, Lambo isn't the only surprised one though. Tsuna stands from where he was sitting at his desk and frowns. "Lambo? What are...oh. Right." He runs a hand through his messy brown hair. "I'm sorry, Lambo but we're in the middle of a very important meeting."

Lambo looks around the room and while he can still feel the tension, it's not as bad as it was that morning. Gokudera sees him staring and glares back, "Go back to sleep, brat."

"Are you guys still discussing the man with the scythe tattoo?"

His Vongola brothers, Chrome, and Dino turn to Tsuna, wondering what to answer. The Vongola boss sighs.

"How did you know?"

"I heard you guys talking this morning."

He sees Yamamoto and Gokudera lower their heads in shame, knowing their baby brother must have heard them as well.

"Lambo, I'm sorry you had to hear that but we need to finish this meeting. I'll talk to you in the morning, is that ok?"

Any other time, Lambo would have agreed but the extra weight he brought back from the park won't let him walk away. He shakes his head and slowly pulls the gun out from the back of his pants. The chairs in the room push back, everybody getting to their feet. Tsuna reaches his side first.

"Lambo, where did you get this?" There's anger there but the teen knows there is also fear and concern.

"When you guys finished fighting I went to the park to cry, I mean, to think about Haruto." He doesn't miss the sadness on their faces. "A kid saw me and thought I needed help so he introduced me to his friend. Billy sold me this gun to kill you."

"You bought a gun?!"

"How could you have been so stupid?"

"What were you thinking?"

Tsuna silences his brothers by simply raising his hand. He doesn't look away from his baby brother when he extends his hand, palm up. Lambo hands over the gun, immediately feeling lighter.

"Are you ok?"

Lambo shakes his head, forcing the tears back. "I was scared. I thought he was going to kill me like he did Haruto if I said no."

He can feel the tension grow tenfold at his words and regrets the pain he's causing his family.

"How do you know it was him?"

"He had the scythe tattoo on his right hand. I think - I think this is the gun he used on Haruto. Tsuna-nii, I'm sorry I didn't stop him. I was so scared I couldn't do anything." He begins to tremble as he remembers how useless he felt watching the car drive away but he knows he wouldn't have been a match for Billy. Especially with Leo there, Lambo had worried Billy would use the child against him and he hadn't been able to do anything in the end.

Tsuna hands the gun to Romario. He asks Dino to have it tested and see if it's the same gun that killed Haruto. The Chiavarone boss leaves with his right-hand man with the promise he'll let them know as soon as they find out.

The Tenth wraps his baby brother in a tight embrace, apologizing as he does. "I'm so sorry, Lambo. This is my fault. You should have never been out there on your own and I'm sorry you found out about Haruto the way you did. But Lambo, you have nothing to apologize for."

"Tsuna's right, we're sorry we let it get this bad. I'm sorry you heard us this morning too. We were mad and hurt about Haruto but that's no excuse. If anything it should have brought us closer together to get this bastard."

"So you're not mad at each other anymore?" Lambo asks with innocent eyes.

"Tch, we worked it out."

"Kufufu, it's too bad you couldn't put a stop to the trash responsible for my troubles."

"Mukuro-sama,"

"Mukuro, don't."

Lambo can't help it, he laughs at his brother's normal behavior. "Actually, I think I might help you get him yourself."

Mukuro smirks but Hibari is the one who says, "Tell me."

"Guys, calm down. We are not going to rush into anything, not again."

He doesn't mention Haruto but he doesn't need to. The room quiets down allowing Tsuna to continue.

"Lambo, why do you say that?"

"I didn't have any money to pay for the gun so Billy took my phone. He said to take him the money tomorrow or he'd get his associates to find my friends and family and make them pay instead. I know where he'll be waiting for me, you don't have to look for him anymore because I'll take you to him."

They react as expected.

"No way are you coming with us."

"Lambo-chan, it's too dangerous."

"Like hell, you're not going."

"That's EXTREMELY out of the question!"

"I won't tell you otherwise. Haruto was my friend too and I want to make sure Billy pays."

Tsuna puts his hands on Lambo's shoulders. "Lambo, I'm sorry but we don't know if or who Billy is working with. I won't put you in danger again. You're going to tell me where Billy will be and we'll take care of it. Is that understood?"

Lambo knows he won't win, not this time. Not when a member of their famiglia has already been killed. He sighs then nods. "Just make him pay."

"We will, I promise."

* * *

Lambo can't stop pacing back and forth in the living room the following day. His siblings had left earlier in the day to scope the address Billy had given Lambo and still weren't back. He's worried and scared something might have gone wrong but he knows better than to call them while they're on a mission.

What if something did go wrong, though? What if somebody had gotten hurt? What if-

The loud screech of a car out front stops him from continuing the worrisome thoughts. The teen wonders who it could be but before he can go see, the door bursts open. Shamal runs inside without sparing him a glance.

"Pervy-san? I mean, Shamal sensei, what are you doing here? What's going on?" Lambo asks as he runs with the family doctor.

"I hate treating this damn family. Nothing but trouble follows you all then I'm the one responsible for keeping you alive."

"Huh?"

"I got a call to prepare the infirmary. One of your brothers got shot just now and he's being rushed over."

Lambo stops. One of his brothers got shot? He doesn't go after Shamal knowing the man can't afford to be distracted if he's to save his brother. Which one, Lambo doesn't care. He loves all his family even though they're crazy most of the time.

No more than five minutes later, Yamamoto and Ryohei rush in carrying an unconscious Gokudera between them. Tsuna and Reborn following them. They all look like they have been fighting and Lambo figures the worst really did happen.

The teen watches as Gokudera is placed on a bed with Shamal immediately going over the smoke bomber. He must have known it was Gokudera who'd been shot because he doesn't seem surprised.

"That's a lot of blood." He thinks to himself. Or at least, he thought he did. Tsuna turns and looks surprised to see him standing there. He takes a step towards his baby brother but then looks back to Gokudera, obvious hesitation on his face.

Lambo doesn't bother waiting to see if he's followed. He rushes back to the living room and kicks the small table in the center, causing it to flip over. This is his fault. He knew Billy had been bad news and he still told his family about him. He could have just deleted the contents from his phone with the security program Shoichi had installed on all their devices and forgotten all about it but he'd wanted the bastard to pay for what he did to Haruto. And now Gokudera was hurt because of it.

"Lambo, he's going to be ok."

The teen angrily turns to his older brother. "Ok? Haya-nii is in there bleeding from a hole in his body and it's my fault."

"None of this is your fault and Hayato will be fine, Shamal said so. Unfortunately, he lost a fair amount of blood which is why he's unconscious but he'll be ok."

"What happened? Are the others ok?"

"Everyone else is fine. They stayed to clean up the mess." Tsuna hesitates then continues, "He recognized you. When Billy saw you talking to Leo at the park, he knew from the beginning you were Vongola and set up a trap with his famiglia. Hayato got shot protecting Takeshi."

"So it is my fault."

"No, it's not. Lambo, this is what we do. We do all we can to stop the bad guys then deal with the fallout, whatever it might be."

Lambo can't help but remember how Reborn had sounded the same when he spoke of Haruto's death and now it's Tsuna.

"You seemed more concerned over Haruto's death than you do over Haya-nii."

If Lambo hadn't been looking at Tsuna, he would have missed the slight twitch in his brother's eye but that's the only reaction his words get.

"That's because I had to tell Haruto's mom he wasn't coming home. I know Gokudera's not going anywhere. He's not allowed to leave us." Tsuna says as he pulls something out of his pocket. He tosses Lambo the teen's phone before heading back to the infirmary and Lambo can't help but feel bad. He shouldn't have said anything but he'd been angry and hadn't thought before speaking. He'll apologize later.

He drops into one of the sofas and sighs as he plays with his phone. His life would always be like this. Why did he bother worrying over anybody? There would always be some kind of danger; a chance one of his siblings wouldn't come home.

"It's been a bad week for all of us. Give him some time, he'll be fine."

"Yeah, sure."

"Lambo," Yamamoto sighs as he sits next to his brother. "We all handle grief differently. Haruto was a great friend and he didn't deserve to die but he knew it was a risk. We all know we can die at any moment but this is the life we've chosen. He loved it here and while we'll miss him we need to make sure his death isn't to be wasted. Tsuna knows this but he won't openly express his grief, he wants to be strong for us."

"Takeshi's right, Tsuna will try to deal with this on his own so the least we can do is support him however we can. We need to keep fighting bad guys and to keep saving people. We'll live to the extreme that way." Ryohei adds as he takes his place on the other side of Lambo.

The teen shrugs, "It's extreme, I know. That doesn't mean I have to like it."

Yamamoto pulls the teen to his side, resting his hand on his brother's hair. "Are you going to be ok?"

"I lost a friend, bought a gun, got my brother shot and verbally assaulted another brother but yeah, I guess I'll be ok since this is what I signed up for."

His brothers don't respond knowing words won't make a difference. The fallout for being mafia would never end but they would be damned if that meant they wouldn't do everything in their power to keep each other safe.

* * *

Yikes, kind of a depressing ending but mafia isn't all rainbows and unicorns. Um, It's about two in the morning but I wanted to post this before I changed my mind. I feel like each time I go over it, I find something wrong and change it. If I keep going I'll end up deleting the whole thing and starting over. Lol Please review! I know it might be a pain but it means the world to someone who works hard on their stories. Even a simple good job! will do.

Also, when Gokudera tells Yamamoto he should have jumped off the roof, I took that from the manga. I haven't read it but I remember somebody saying in the manga Yamamoto contemplates suicide when he injures his arm and fears he'll never play baseball again. If that's wrong, sorry!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	7. G is for Guilt

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

Ok, I had no idea this chapter would turn into such a monster but what can you do when inspiration hits?

 _ **Warning:**_ Language, Language, _**LANGUAGE**_! Honestly, folks, this monster has a potty mouth. Also, violence, blood, and your typical hurt Lambo.

Thanks to my amazing reviewers for always making my day. You guys seriously keep me going.

PSA: Probably riddled with mistakes but thanks Grammarly for not making me look like a total idiot.

Without further ado, G is for…

* * *

"Hello, Sayo-san." Lambo greets as he walks into the small shop, digging through his school bag to find some change as he does. His gloves get dirty on some melted chocolate but he doesn't mind. Mama will wash them later.

It had been a long day at school; he'd failed a test, accidentally pushed a classmate into a puddle, had his lunch stolen, and baseball practice had been terrible. After such an appalling day, Lambo had decided to treat himself to something sweet. He had thought about stopping by _Sweet Nothings_ but Sayo Yuki's small grocery shop is on the way home and they have ice cream which is what he's craving even though it's a cold day.

The older woman waves with a smile from behind the counter where she's helping another customer. "Welcome back, Lambo. How was school?"

"Boring," He mutters with a shrug. "I'm going to get some ice cream to forget." He says loosening the tie on his school uniform forgetting about his dirty gloves and getting chocolate on it making him sigh.

Yuki and the customer laugh at his answer, "I hope it's always ice cream you use to forget your problems."

"I'm sure you'll offer him your best selection of alcohol once he's old enough, Sayo-san."

"Nonsense, Lambo won't be one of those drunkards. I'm sure his family will never allow it."

Lambo ignores their conversation as he makes his way to the back. It's about six in the evening but the shop is almost deserted. He can see two men in jackets - each wearing a pair of warm gloves, probably in their early twenties, by the alcohol section talking about the latest sports game. There's a woman with a small child looking at the meager vegetable selection and an older man with shaggy hair standing in front of the candy rack.

The thirteen-year-old takes a slight pause as he passes by the shaggy-haired man, something about him makes Lambo frown. The man is wearing a tank top, shorts and sandals even though the weather is anything but warm. He's also not doing anything but stares at the candy, a faraway look on his face with a hand resting on some plum bites.

Lambo continues his way to the cooler where the ice cream is kept but decides to keep an eye on the strange man as well. Yuki finishes with the customer she'd been talking to and begins to clean the counter as the woman leaves. The two men who'd been looking at alcohol pick up a couple of cases of beer and begin to head to the front. They laugh at something the blond says as they pass the shaggy-haired man, the other with glasses accidentally bumping into the odd man by the candy.

"Sorry, sir."

Instead of accepting the apology, the man turns to them with a glare. From his spot, Lambo can see the deranged look in his eyes and it makes him gulp. He'd seen that look before. It never leads to anything good.

"You're sorry? You just assaulted me and think a sorry is enough to make up for it?"

The men look at each other in confusion, "It was an accident, I didn't mean to. I'm sorry."

"I'm sure you are," He growls.

The men begin to walk to the front looking bewildered at the exchange. Yuki looks concerned but doesn't say anything as the men place the beer on the counter. The woman with a child is looking around bemused at the raised voices but keeps quiet as well.

Lambo can feel the apprehension in the shop but tries to fight down his own nerves. He picks the nearest ice cream bar without really paying attention and heads to the front as well. The sooner he leaves the sooner he can forget about this day.

The shop is playing soft music loud enough to be heard but low enough not to be a nuisance yet Lambo hears the familiar click of a gun as if it had been played through loudspeakers.

He quickly turns; just in time to see the shaggy-haired man point a gun towards the two men. Lambo wants to warn them but the gun goes off before he can even open his mouth. The blast is deafening, a loud ringing echoing in his ears. He drops the ice cream bar before crouching to the floor as he covers his ears in fear.

He watches as the man with glasses cries out then falls forward, a red stain growing on the back of his brown jacket.

"Reo! Oh, my god, Reo!"

The blond shakes his friend, waiting for a response but to no avail. Lambo can hear the woman with the small girl scream from somewhere behind him and Yuki crying into her hands at the sight before her.

Lambo dares to look at Shaggy who is standing with the gun still pointed in their direction, eyes wide as he stares at the blond crying over Reo.

"Now he's truly sorry." He whispers but Lambo hears it. The teen shudders at the almost relieved look Shaggy holds.

"You bastard!" The blond shouts as he stands ready to lunge himself at Shaggy but the raised gun stops him.

"Don't. Just-just go ahead and sit back down. Don't you dare call the police!" He yells at Yuki who promptly drops the phone back into the receiver.

Lambo watches as the blood begins to pool around Reo, the man looks pale and completely unmoving. The teen knows the man is dead.

"All of you, move to the back. Not you!" He points his gun around as he instructs everyone. "You, open the register and give me all the money."

Lambo slowly stands and moves to where Shaggy had pointed, the woman and child already there. The blond is glaring at Shaggy with hatred, refusing to move. The man moves towards him and hits the blond with the gun. The blond stumbles, grabbing on to the counter for support then quickly stands again.

"Unless you want to end up like your violent friend, move. Now."

With one last glance to Reo, the blond joins the small group of hostages. Lambo watches Yuki empty the register before handing the money to Shaggy who grabs it from her hands.

"This is it? This can't be all you have."

"I-I'm sorry but it's been a slow day. That's all I have, I swear." She cries. Her trembling frame makes Lambo think she might collapse any moment.

The girl who sits next to Lambo begins to cry in her mother's arms. She can't be more than six and Lambo can't help but feel sorry for her.

"Shut up!" Shaggy points the gun towards them and the mother pulls the girl closer, trying to calm her down with soft whispers that everything will be ok.

"You have your money, leave." The blond growls but stays in his spot. Lambo hadn't noticed the man had purposely sat in front of them, trying to block the children from view.

"And go where? My wife kicked me out of my home. My own home! She thought I was abusive and refused to let me back in. I can't even get my things which is why I'm freezing my balls off in this stupid getup."

That explains why he's gone mad with rage although Lambo doesn't blame the woman. This man obviously has issues.

The sound of sirens causes him to tense. The women seem to relax a little thinking the police will save them but Lambo knows Shaggy might kill them all if they're not careful.

"What do you want from us then?" Lambo asks, trying to sound braver than he feels. The blond turns to glare at him.

"Shut up, kid. Don't draw attention to yourself." He whispers harshly.

"What do I want? I don't fucking know! I want my shitty life back which we all know isn't going to happen. Fuck all of this!"

Lambo can see Shaggy has lost all sense of reasoning when he shoots towards the doors even though nobody is there. They're in trouble and Lambo knows it's only a matter of time before he turns the gun on them.

The blond seems to think the same and before Lambo can say anything, he tackles Shaggy to the ground, the surprise making Shaggy drop his gun which slides off to the side.

"Get out, now!"

The women and kid run outside but Lambo can't move. He notices what the blond doesn't which is a pocket knife in Shaggy's hand. The man swipes at the blond causing the man to fall back with a cry. He clutches his arm to the side where a deep gash is visible.

"You piece of shit! You let my hostages go. How will I get money now?"

Shaggy is about to attack but stops when Lambo shouts. He and the blond turn to Lambo who is now standing with the gun pointed at the crazed man. His hands are shaking but his gaze lets them know he's not playing around.

Lambo hates the way the gun feels comfortable in his hands, he hates how he knows what he's doing because he was forced to shoot before.

"You won't shoot me, you damn brat. You think I'm scared of you?"

"Kid, it's ok. Don't do it."

The blond tries to move back but Shaggy yells again. He raises his hand and begins to move towards the injured man. Lambo doesn't hesitate. He knows the blond will die like his friend if Lambo doesn't do something.

He shoots.

The man staggers with an anguished cry, the bullet having hit his side where blood begins to spill. He turns to Lambo, surprise on his face which quickly turns into fury. He raises his arm and runs towards Lambo who pulls the trigger again and again. Shaggy drops the pocket knife, falling to his knees then face first into the ground. Lambo stands over him, gun still in his trembling hands.

"Kid, kid, you're ok." The blond slowly takes the gun from Lambo who is staring at the dead man on the floor. He knows he killed him but he still asks,

"Is he dead?"

The blond looks towards Shaggy and nods, "Yeah, he's dead."

Almost as if time stands still, Lambo thinks of all the possible outcomes for his actions. He just killed a man - a bad man who killed someone and was about to kill somebody else but the teen had still taken a life. Lambo is mafia and murder is something that comes with the territory so it's not like he did something vile. It's practically expected from him, right?

But he's part of Vongola which is supposed to be different. His famiglia is fighting to end the bloodshed, not add to it. Will he be kicked out? He can't afford to lose his family over this.

"They can't know, my family can't know I killed someone." He begs the blond who looks back with pity but understanding.

"You saved me, kid. I would have done the same thing, this isn't your fault. Besides, he killed my best friend and would have killed us too if you hadn't stopped him."

"You don't understand! My family can't know, they won't want to be associated with a murderer."

They can hear footsteps approaching and Lambo begins to hyperventilate. They're going to arrest him, they're going to tell everyone he's a murderer and that will dirty the Vongola name. He's going to be abandoned and forgotten and never have a family again.

The police barge into the shop, taking notice of the dead bodies on the floor then the two remaining people.

"Put the gun down!"

The blond puts the gun down then raises his hands with a wince from his injury, "It was self-defense. I had no choice."

Lambo is too shocked to say anything, he just turns from the blond to the corpse on the floor. He can't help but think how ironic the whole situation is. His first kill and it had nothing to do with mafia.

* * *

Lambo stares out the window as his brother drives him home. The police had asked for his information and the number of his legal guardian to pick him up at the station. The teen hadn't wanted to see his mom crying which he knew she would do so he'd written them Hibari's number on a piece of paper along with his brother's name. They had recognized the name and Lambo had cracked a smile seeing them argue over who would notify the monster of Namimori about what had happened.

When Hibari had arrived, he'd looked furious at the lack of information given over the phone. The detectives in charge of the case had told him the situation and how Stephen, the blond had a real name, had saved Lambo. Thankfully the small shop had no cameras, Stephen and Lambo had both been wearing gloves which meant no fingerprints on the gun, and there had been no witnesses to what had actually happened. Stephen took responsibility for killing Shaggy against his better judgment and Lambo was grateful the case had been closed.

Even though everyone thought Stephen had fired the gun, Lambo knew the truth and it was weighing heavily on the teen. He remembers how his hands had shaken as he'd taken the shots, how blood had covered the floor of the shop, how Shaggy's eyes had faded as his life was taken. He'd killed a man, somebody's life had been taken by his hands. The guilt he feels is immense. He's ashamed and knows he won't be able to look at his family in the eyes without feeling guilty.

The teen knows Hibari keeps glancing over, knows he can see his hands continue to shake but he can't stop them. He'd heard the detectives tell Hibari that Lambo was in shock, said the boy hadn't said a word since the incident. They'd told him to be patient which had been the last straw. The Cloud Guardian had grabbed the teen and left the station without another word.

Lambo sees they're approaching his street and feels nauseous. His mom is going to hug him without having any idea her son is a murderer. His family will be in the presence of a killer and have no idea.

"We're here," Hibari says snapping Lambo from his thoughts. The teen unbuckles himself then opens the door, stepping outside with trepidation. How will he ever face his family with this dark secret looming over him?

The door opens and his mom rushes towards him, engulfing him in a tight hug as tears stream down her face. "I was so worried when Kyoya called. Lambo, are you ok?"

Lambo nods but his mouth stays shut. He knows if he opens it then the truth will come out and he can't have that happening. He will stay quiet for the rest of his life if he has to.

His mom watches him with worry, turning to Hibari who gives a small shake of his head. She seems to understand and gently pulls Lambo inside the house. "Why don't you go take a bath while I finish dinner."

Lambo nods and heads up to his room, leaving his mom and brother without looking back. He knows they're worried, even Hibari though he'd never admit to it; Lambo doesn't care. They shouldn't be worried over a murderer. He knows it'll be harder once Tsuna and the others come back from their mission but he can't let them find out the truth. They'll for sure kick him out of Vongola.

He loses track of time in the bath, only getting out once his skin is all wrinkly and the water goes cold. He takes his time changing into his pj's then steps out into the hall. He can make out hushed voices from downstairs and knows Tsuna's back. From the sound of things, he's only just returned and hadn't been told about what had happened.

"Is he ok? Why didn't you call me immediately?" Lambo knows the question is not directed at their mother because there is no way he'd ever talk to her like that. He's proven correct when Hibari answers.

"Watch your tone, Tsunayoshi."

"Tsuna, we were on a dangerous mission. I'm sure Kyoya didn't want to cause any distractions seeing as Lambo isn't hurt." Yamamoto says ever the peacekeeper.

"He still should have called me," Tsuna replies with frustration but his tone has gone calmer.

"Lambo hasn't spoken at all. It's like he can't talk anymore." Lambo hears his mom whimper and he feels bad for causing her to worry but he's got no choice.

"Mama, I'm sure that's just from shock. We just need to be patient." Yamamoto states.

Lambo doesn't want to hear the rest and heads quietly to his room. He gets into bed and tries to go to sleep. He ignores his brother when Tsuna walks inside asking if he wants dinner. He pretends to be asleep and knows Tsuna doesn't buy it but he doesn't care. After a few minutes, Tsuna leaves and Lambo can feel exhaustion take over. He finally lets sleep claim him but it doesn't last long.

He sits up in bed covered in sweat, breathing heavily as he tries to remember where he is. He's in his room, not back in the shop. He's in his bed, there's no dead man around and there's definitely no blood.

Lambo cries and moves his hand to wipe his eyes then freezes. He's wrong, there is blood. A lot of it all over his hands. He can see it dripping onto his covers and he wants to scream but no sound comes out. He quickly pushes the covers away, standing up so fast he trips and falls down. He ignores the sharp pain on his knees and rushes out of his room to the bathroom where he locks the door and heads to the sink. He turns the water on and tries to scrub the blood away but it's no use. The blood refuses to fade.

He's not sure how long he's in there when there's a light knock at the door. Lambo jumps back, wondering how to hide the blood but when he looks down, it's all gone. He's going crazy and he knows it's guilt.

"Lambo? Are you ok?"

Of course, Tsuna _would_ come to check on him. Calming his breathing, he splashes water on his face before turning the faucet off. He quickly dries off with a towel and opens the door slowly. Tsuna is in his sweats and a t-shirt, his hair completely disheveled but his eyes are alert and filled with worry.

"Lambo, what's wrong? Talk to me, kiddo."

The teen shakes his head, not looking at his brother. He walks around Tsuna and begins to head to his room but Tsuna places a hand on his shoulder to stop him. Lambo shrugs it off then turns to glare at the Vongola boss.

"I'm sorry, I'm just worried about you, little brother."

Lambo normally loves when Tsuna calls him that but not right now. He can feel his defenses going down and Tsuna knows it. Lambo shakes his head when Tsuna asks if there's anything he can do to help.

Knowing he won't get anything else, Tsuna doesn't try to stop Lambo again when the teen walks back to his room. Once he's safe in his bed, Lambo silently cries himself to sleep.

* * *

It's been a week since that fateful day and Lambo isn't sure how much more he can take. He hasn't been going to school and thankfully his brothers haven't pushed him about it but he knows it's only a matter of time. Reborn has been tutoring him and Lambo knows the hitman would like nothing better than to slap him out of this trauma.

The family is worried and Lambo can't blame them. He hasn't been eating because he can't keep anything down, he hasn't been sleeping because the nightmares won't let him, and the blood keeps appearing on his hands at the most unexpected times. He knows it's not real, he _knows_ it's not real but he still freaks out and rushes to the nearest sink to scrub his hands without his family seeing.

Lambo looks at his hands and winces at how bad they are. They're blistered and red from so much scrubbing, some of his own blood mixing with Shaggy's but he can't help it. He wipes his hands on the side of his pants, drying them off as best he can before heading back down.

He stops at the top step. He feels his heart skip a beat, he can see the blood again but this time he doesn't pay attention to it. Why? Because there at the door shaking hands with Tsuna is none other than Stephen.

"Thank you for coming, Ikeda-san."

Stephen gives Tsuna a small smile, "Please, call me Stephen."

They don't notice him, he doesn't move. They walk to the living room without a glance up and Lambo begins to shake. Why is Stephen here? Why did Tsuna thank him for coming, had he invited him over? Did Tsuna...know?

Lambo feels sick. He is going to get kicked out. He will lose his family and everything he holds dear. He quietly sits down, it's all over.

He can hear Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Ryohei introduce themselves and Lambo feels his breath hitch. They all know.

He stays there for almost an hour. He can hear Tsuna say they're completely lost on how to help Lambo, they need to know exactly what happened to help and Stephen tells them after only slightly hesitating.

Stephen tells them everything. He tells them about his friend getting shot, about lunging for Shaggy, the pocket knife and Lambo saving his life by taking Kota's. Apparently Shaggy had a real name too.

He listens as Stephen thanks them for helping with Reo's funeral expenses which Lambo had no idea they'd done. Tsuna thanks him for helping Lambo and says that's the least they could do. Lambo doesn't realize he's walking down the stairs until he's on the first step. He's still standing there when Stephen, Tsuna and the others finally notice him.

Tsuna stands, "Lambo,"

Lambo doesn't bother hearing the rest. He knows he's going to be told to leave Vongola and he can't bear to hear his brother say it. He runs to the door, opening it quickly and running down the street. He can hear his brothers shouting for him to stop but he doesn't. He runs and runs not caring about the stares he's receiving.

When he finally stops running, his lungs are on fire. His legs are aching and his head is pounding. He looks around as he tries to slow his breathing and blinks at his surroundings. Without thinking, he'd run to Hibari's base.

Without a second thought and with whatever energy he has left, he runs inside. It doesn't take long to reach the training ground where Hibari's men are currently cleaning. Kusakabe spots him immediately and jogs to the teen.

"Lambo, what is it? What's wrong?"

Lambo doesn't say anything, his breathing is still erratic but he doesn't care. The teen pulls out a grenade and throws it into the air just as it explodes. Kusakabe tells someone to get Hibari even though the explosion will have alerted his brother to something going on - which is the point. He needs to get this frustration out and who better than his brother to help?

Lambo throws a fist at Kusakabe seeing as he's right in front of him but the man easily dodges the attack. Lambo keeps going. He kicks and punches and does what he can to get the man to fight back but Kusakabe just blocks his attacks.

Lambo is crying, tears blur his vision as he continues to fight and finally realizes it's no longer Kusakabe he's hitting but Hibari.

The monster of Namimori, the one member of Vongola who'd never hesitate in fighting back, the one who is known as Psycho-nii...lives up to his name. The Cloud Guardian swings a tonfa and smacks Lambo's side. The teen clenches his teeth but doesn't stop. He's bruised and bleeding within a minute of fighting Hibari but he doesn't care. He deserves it.

Lambo falls on one knee when Hibari kicks him down. Lambo is breathing heavily, gasping for air but sees the tonfa rise above his head. He waits for the pain but of course, it doesn't come.

"Kyoya!"

Lambo falls forward, closing his eyes automatically from exhaustion. He hears footsteps approach him, a pair of hands help him sit up but Lambo refuses to open his eyes.

"What the fuck is your problem?" Gokudera shouts and Lambo wants to shrug in reply when he realizes the question is for Hibari.

"He wanted to fight. Did you think I'd take it easy?"

"Kyoya, you're never going to change, are you?" Yamamoto asks with a laugh which seems out of place given the circumstances.

"Lambo, can you hear me?"

The teen can feel the familiar warmth of Ryohei's healing ability as Tsuna continues to speak to him. "Lambo, please open your eyes."

Lambo blinks a few times, his vision is still blurry but he can make out his brother's concerned face and he feels even worse.

"What were you thinking, little brother?" Tsuna softly asks, laying his head against Lambo's. "Please, tell me what you're thinking now..."

This does it. The teen breaks down as he grabs his brother's shirt tightly. He closes his eyes when he sees the red on his hands, Shaggy's blood.

He can just make out Kusakabe ordering his men to leave, knowing Lambo wouldn't want anybody to see him like this and the teen is grateful.

The teen wants to wipe his eyes but stops his hands before reaching his face. He doesn't want to touch his eyes with bloody hands. He's about to put his hands down but Tsuna grabs them. Lambo tries to pull them away, not wanting his brother to sully his hands with blood the teen spilled but Tsuna holds on.

"Look at me, Lambo,"

The young boy looks up at Tsuna and sobs. Tsuna looks down at him with so much tenderness, so much love and Lambo can't take it. He'd brought shame to his beloved family.

"There is no blood on your hands. Do you hear me? Your hands are clean."

Lambo shakes his head but still doesn't speak. He looks at his hands and cries harder at the red covering them.

"There is _no_ blood. You saved a man. You saved someone just like any member of Vongola would have. You made us proud. We are proud of you. I am so proud of you, little brother."

The teen wails and Tsuna pulls him into a tight embrace. Lambo keeps crying as Tsuna tells him he did nothing wrong, he didn't murder anyone, he's not a killer. He repeats it over and over and over until Lambo begins to believe it.

"You're a true Vongola, Lambo. You saved an innocent life by doing what you had to do."

Lambo shakes his head once more but thankfully with less effort. Tsuna grabs Lambo's face and makes the teen look up at him. "You saved a life. You have nothing to feel guilty about. You proved you belong with this family. There is nothing, you got that? _Nothing_ you can do that will ever make me ashamed to call you a member of this family. I am proud to call you my brother."

"You were a brave man, Lambo. I'm proud to call you my brother too." Yamamoto says ruffling the teen's hair.

"It took extreme guts to do what you did. You're the best brother anyone could ask for!"

"I'm proud of you, Lambo." Gokudera sounds constipated and Lambo can't stop the laugh, although watery, from leaving his lips.

"If that's not the most beautiful sound I've ever heard, I don't know what is," Tsuna says with a smile. He hugs his brother once more.

"I-I'm sorry I worried you all,"

Yamamoto laughs, "I think _that's_ the most beautiful sound."

"It's so good to hear you again, extremely good!"

"Tch, I can't wait till it gets annoying again," Gokudera grumbles but affectionately runs his fingers through Lambo's hair.

Lambo looks around and notices it's just him and his brothers. Hibari is off to the side but he didn't leave and that assures Lambo the Cloud Guardian is showing he's relieved or at least glad the teen's ok.

He wipes his eyes without thinking then freezes. He looks at his hands but Tsuna's right. There is no blood. He can only hope the nightmares stop soon as well. Life can't keep punishing him, right? He saved a life, damn it. That's gotta count for something, he hopes.

"I'm sorry for lying to you,"

"Don't worry. We'll talk about that later, ok?"

Lambo shakes his head. "I didn't tell you because I was afraid I'd be kicked out from Vongola. I know how much you hate killing and I got scared. I killed Shaggy but it was in order to protect the blond, I mean, Stephen. I swear. But then afterward, I felt like the blood would never disappear no matter how much or hard I scrubbed. The guilt kept the blood coming and the nightmares too."

"I take it that's why you haven't been sleeping?"

Lambo nods, "I keep seeing Shaggy there on the floor, covered in blood. You were all there looking down at me, calling-calling me a murderer." He whimpers.

"Lambo,"

"I tried to explain why I did it but nobody would listen. I apologized over and over again but I still ended up getting kicked out of Vongola. It-it hurt so much because I still lost you guys each time."

Tsuna gently and lovingly drops his fist on Lambo's head which causes the teen to yelp even though it isn't painful.

"When have we _ever_ given you the impression that we would abandon you?"

Lambo sniffs, wiping his nose on his sleeve, "Never?"

"Never. You know why?"

"Because...you're my family?"

"Because you're our brother. Our baby brother who'd we miss very much if you weren't here."

Lambo looks down at his hands once more, still no blood. "So you don't hate me?"

Tsuna sighs, "You gotta work with me, little brother." The Vongola boss says with a chuckle.

"Of course we don't hate you, stupid. Are you really not understanding or are you really just stupid?"

"You're stupid, stupid!" Lambo shouts back at Gokudera which causes Yamamoto to call the smoke bomber stupid as well which of course, causes them to fight. Hibari, not one to stand by while anybody fights, joins in on the fun.

"Lambo, we've all done things we're not proud of and that can't be helped. However, one thing we'll always be proud of is the love we have for each other. We're in this together. For-ev-er. Is that clear enough for you?"

Lambo laughs, "Crystal clear."

"Good, now let's go home."

Tsuna stands then offers his hand to Lambo who gladly accepts it after making sure his hands are still clean. Once he's on his feet, his legs feel shaky but Tsuna helps him stay up by wrapping his arm around the teen's waist and Lambo's around his shoulders while Ryohei does the same on the other side.

"Tsuna-nii, why did Stephen show up?"

"We had no idea what was going on with you. We guessed you might have taken a shot at, uh, Shaggy?" At Lambo's nod, the Tenth continues. "I had no idea you'd taken _all_ the shots but I guess it makes sense with how often you kept washing your hands."

"You knew?"

"How could we miss how red and hurt your hands were? We knew you wouldn't tell us why so we did the next best thing."

"I asked Stephen to meet us to tell us everything. I knew the police wasn't hiding anything because their files came out clean."

"You hacked their system?"

"Of course not," Tsuna clears his throat. "Verde did."

Lambo laughs then sighs, "I really am sorry."

"I'm sorry you felt you couldn't come to us but we'll work on that. Lambo, can you promise me something?"

Lambo tenses without meaning to but nods.

"Don't ever stop talking again? Hearing your silence was more deafening than you shouting. You were missing even though you were there with us."

Lambo feels his eyes water, "I promise."

Once they reach the car, his brothers help Lambo get in and the teen finally feels comfortable around his family.

"By the way, Stephen said you were a great shot. Where did you learn to shoot? And don't try to say somebody in our family taught you because I know they wouldn't have without letting me know."

"When Billy sold me the gun last month. He took me to an empty lot and taught me how to shoot."

"What?!"

"I was gone until midnight. What did you think we were doing, drinking tea?"

"Lambo?"

"...Yes?"

"You're never going out by yourself again."

"I think I'm ok with that." He says with a laugh.

As they drive home, Lambo can't believe how bad things had gotten over his guilt. He knew his brothers would forgive him, they probably already had. The only one who still needed to forgive him was himself. It wouldn't happen overnight but he knew he would because he understood he had nothing to feel guilty about.

* * *

Holy hell, this had me emotional. I added some extra comfort because I had a rough week and...yeah. If you enjoyed, please take a second to review. It kinda hurts seeing how many hits this story gets but only five lovely people let me know what they think. I'm not trying to guilt anyone, just asking for some more motivation. Thank you!

Side note, this has nothing to do with Teacher's Pet. I really wanted to do something aside from Lambo feeling guilty about killing someone since Fuuta went through this already but G refused to be anything else. I hope you still enjoyed!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	8. H is for Heir Apparent

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

This is a little long but I seriously enjoyed writing it so much so I hope you enjoy reading it. This is for all the lovely reviews which honestly pushed me to hurry with this chapter. Please continue to encourage me on this fun journey through Lambo's Corner. Your words really make a huge difference with my muse.

Warning: Gokudera's language, a bit of violence, and your typical mafia business. Also, I bring back a character from _Lambo's True Famiglia_ but this is completely separate from it and has nothing to do with that story. Also, I have no idea how the whole heir apparent thing actually works so...pretend with me.

As always, thanks Grammarly for the help and I shall go over any other mistakes at a later time. Probably.

Without further ado, H is for...

* * *

If Hibari is asked which day of the week is his favorite, he would beat up whoever dared ask for thinking they could talk to him in the first place. Once he had gone back to being alone he would think about how much he enjoys Sundays. Sundays were usually peaceful compared to the other days and it is also the day he can visit the animal shelter - not too many people went in the mornings. Today, he had been able to train a kitten to take down a person. Sundays were always fun.

It is now nearing noon which means he had about an hour before a certain herbivore texted him for money to buy some sweets. It seems Sundays are Lambo's favorite day as well but for different reasons. Each Sunday the small brat would visit _Sweet Nothings_ \- a candy shop where the owner, Jacko Honda, understood the teen's love for sweets. The man would even reward Lambo for receiving good grades at school.

This has been going on for quite some time and it seems to motivate Lambo to try harder in school, especially when it is the grape season. During one of those first trips, however, Hibari had been around the area when Lambo had texted him - asking for some change to complete a transaction. One time. It had been one time and ever since then, Lambo asks him every Sunday. Of course, that doesn't mean the Cloud Guardian gives him money - not all the time at least, but the young herbivore still asks.

Hibari will never admit it out loud but his youngest bother has slightly grown on him. He is annoying most of the time and Lambo still cries whenever things don't go his way but with some more proper training, he'd be worthy of…well, he'd be allowed to call Hibari that ridiculous name which Lambo picked out for him.

Hibari does not pause his walk when Namimori Middle School's anthem rings out from his phone. Many have told him over the years to change it and many have received tonfas to the head for their trouble. He looks at his phone and is a little surprised to see Lambo has sent a text message. It is a bit early but his instincts tell Hibari something is off. Lambo is never on time, let alone early.

 _ **Come to Sweet Nothings**_

That seems normal enough but after years of honing his instincts, he knows there is something definitely off.

 **I'm not your bank.**

Hibari doesn't wait for a reply. He immediately turns around and hurriedly walks towards where the shop is located. He hopes his bother is safe - if anything just to avoid a hassle, but at the same time, he hopes he will be given the chance to fight. There is nothing like a good fight to keep him fit.

He looks at his phone when it rings again. The message is short and simple. He begins to run down the street as fast as possible with his tonfas out and gleaming under the sun. It seems he will have some fun after all.

 _ **3 men. Trouble. Help.**_

It only takes him five minutes to reach the small shop but there is no obvious sign of trouble. He pulls out his phone and opens the app the herbivore with the glasses and red hair had installed for him. It keeps track of all his bothers' location. It especially came in handy when keeping watch over the youngest.

He looks at the map and frowns. It shows Lambo's phone by the river which is obviously never a good sign for someone running away from trouble. He puts his phone back in his suit pocket and speeds over to the location. No more than ten minutes later, he hears some commotion coming from underneath the bridge.

Hibari jogs down the hill and finds three men huddled over something. It doesn't take a genius to figure out who they are surrounding. He walks up to the closest one and lands a heavy blow to the head, knocking him easily onto the ground. The other two quickly back away, revealing Hibari's youngest bother on the ground with a bleeding split lip.

"You are disturbing the peace,"

The three men try to hide their fear which they obviously fail to do when they all flinch. One of them, the tallest in the group, steps forward with a frown as he rubs the spot where the tonfa hit.

"We're not causing trouble and this has nothing to do with you."

Lambo scoffs then winces from the pain. He slowly rubs his cheek which is starting to swell. "Jun-san, you're still stupid." He says.

Hibari does not hesitate to show them why he should be respected and never talked back to. Once all three men are lying unconscious on the ground, Hibari turns to Lambo who is now standing although the teen looks a bit winded.

"Why are you causing me trouble so early in the day?"

Lambo is holding his side which means the split lip and swollen cheek aren't the only injuries the teen received from the men. He looks up at Hibari and tries to give a smile but it quickly turns into a wince.

"Um, I didn't mean to?" He shrugs. "They're Bovino and they wanted to take me for a trip but I politely declined their invitation. I guess they didn't like my answer."

Hibari walks towards one of the men, the one Lambo called Jun and pulls him up by the collar - the Bovino emblem on the suit jacket. The Monster of Namimori wakes Jun up, who has enough sense not to antagonize the devil incarnate.

"Why?" Hibari really isn't one for long talks which makes Lambo shake his head.

The man seems confused for only a second but then he answers, "Our boss needs to talk with the brat-" The knee to the chest takes the man's breath away but he realizes his mistake.

"Our boss needs to speak with Lambo as soon as possible."

"My fath-uh, Don Bovino? What does he want with me?"

Jun shakes his head, "Lady Bovino is the one who needs to speak with you." He says as the other two begin to stir.

Hibari watches his youngest bother pale. It seems this Lady Bovino is somebody he must meet.

* * *

Lambo pales. As much as he fears Don Bovino, the man never actually hurt him. In fact, once they realized Lambo would never be a boss, the man had wanted nothing to do with the boy. His mother, on the other hand, took great pleasure in showing Lambo how much of a disappointment he was to them.

Lady Bovino pretends to be this high-maintenance woman who would never be caught getting her hands dirty but Lambo knows the truth. She is the definition of what a cold and heartless mafia boss is with just as many kills as her husband. Of course, the only people who know that are the ones closest to the couple and those killed by her.

If there is one thing Lambo learned from living with the vile woman, it is to never defy her. Lambo knows if he refuses this request, it'll come back to bite him in the ass and the last thing he wants is to get his family involved.

"Oh, um. I-I'll go then. I'm sure it won't take too long, right?" He asks with a fake and forced laugh.

Hibari lets the man go then makes his way to the teen. Lambo watches his brother carefully and hopes the older man can't see how terrified he is but he knows he failed. Hibari grabs Lambo by the ear and practically growls.

"Did I give you permission to go cause more trouble?"

"Hibari-san, I won't make trouble. I'm just going to meet Lady Bovino for a bit."

Lambo realizes too late he used his brother's actual name instead of the nickname he'd given him but doesn't think much of it. Until Hibari releases him, that is.

Not once has Hibari made it apparent he disliked the name but Lambo didn't think he liked it either. Is it possible Hibari had actually liked it? Why else would The Monster of Namimori look like he has been betrayed by Namimori herself?

"Hiba-ah!"

Lambo watches in horror as his brother throws him over his shoulder and turns away from the men.

"But we need to take him," Jun mutters.

Lambo raises his hands in a way to show he has no control over his brother and sighs. He's confused as to why Hibari is acting the way he is but there is no way he's going to voice his thoughts. He really doesn't want to die. And so like a sack of potatoes, he's carried home - more like just around the block.

"Lady Bovino isn't one to be disobeyed," Lambo tells his brother while rubbing his aching side as he walks home.

"Do you think I am?"

"Of course not but she'll cause more trouble if I don't listen to what she has to say. I'm trying to avoid unnecessary damages to your beloved home."

Hibari doesn't say anything else but Lambo can feel the man's anger rolling off in huge tsunami-sized waves. If there's anything Hibari can't stand it is threats against Namimori.

They turn the corner to his street and Lambo begins to feel dread. Why is Hibari still following him? They both know his street is the safest in all of Naminori. The others are home as well so nothing bad will happen and yet, Hibari is still there.

They reach his home and Lambo expects Hibari to turn and walk away but he's wrong. Hibari walks to the door then opens it without knocking. Interesting, Lambo thinks.

The teen follows and watches his older brother head towards the kitchen where his other brothers will more than likely be.

Lambo greets the others with a wave but they aren't paying attention to him since they're busy watching Hibari walk to Gokudera.

"Wh-what the hell do you want?"

Hibari pulls his tonfas out then proceeds to attack in his usual way of greeting. Without a second thought, Yamamoto opens the back door and the two brothers take their discussion outside. Tsuna looks towards Lambo with a raised eyebrow.

"Is he the one that did that to your face?"

Lambo sighs, "No, and before you say anything it wasn't my fault."

Ryohei laughs as he pulls an ice pack from the freezer and Lambo frowns. Why do they always assume it's his fault?

"Now, now. Let's give him a chance to explain before we jump to conclusions." Yamamoto says and it's weird he's the wise one today.

"You're right. First of all, are you ok, Lambo?" Tsuna asks as he walks to the teen.

Lambo puffs out his chest, "Of course I am, this is nothing. You should see the three idiots that messed with me."

"There were three?"

"Um, I should mention they were Bovino,"

Yamamoto and Tsuna immediately tense. Ryohei, who is currently applying the ice pack to Lambo's face, uses too much force and Lambo yelps.

"Sorry, did they hurt you anywhere else?"

As soon as the Bovino name is mentioned, they all turn completely serious. They understood this could always lead to some kind of war which nobody but Hibari and Mukuro wants.

Lambo raises his shirt to reveal a now forming bruise on his side, "They kicked me after I punched one of them."

Ryohei uses his healing flames to ease the pain but Lambo still winces at the older man's touch. His ribs are going to be sore for a bit.

"What did they want?"

Lambo looks at Tsuna and shrugs, "They didn't say at first. All they said was I was to go with them and I declined kind of rudely when I realized they were Bovino. I-I didn't want anything to do with them."

Ryohei pulls down the shirt and leads Lambo to a chair where he instructs the teen to keep the ice on his face. Gokudera chooses that moment to barge back inside.

"He left muttering something about Psycho-nii. What the fuck happened and why did he want to know about the Bovinos?" Gokudera looks at Lambo and frowns, "Did they do that to you?"

Lambo will definitely apologize to Hibari later. He should at least explain he hadn't wanted to sound insulting towards his brother in front of Bovinos. "I texted Hiba-I mean, Psycho-nii to help me as I ran away and thankfully he got there before they really hurt me."

"So it was three on one?" Yamamoto asks with clenched fists.

"Yeah but that was my fault. I know if I hadn't attacked first they probably would have just dragged me to Lady Bovino without laying a hand on me."

"This is not your fault, Lambo." Lambo flinches at the anger in his brother's voice but he knows it's not him Tsuna is mad at. "Wait, Lady Bovino?"

"Yeah, apparently she's the one that wants to talk to me." He knows his voice is shaking but he can't control it. His mother is someone he'll always be afraid of and with good reason.

"Did they say what she wanted?"

Lambo shakes his head, "We left before they could say much more but I'm sure they don't know. Moth-uh, Lady Bovino isn't one to share her plans with those lesser than her."

"It's because you're the Bovino's heir apparent."

Lambo shrieks at the new voice behind him and jumps off to the floor. Reborn doesn't bother to hide his smirk.

"St-stupid Reborn! You know how much I hate you doing that." Lambo shouts while clutching his painful side. Tsuna helps him back up, frowning at Reborn as he does.

"Shouldn't that have been taken care of a long time ago?" Tsuna asks.

"If they left something incomplete, they might need Lambo to finalize the paperwork so he can stand aside and allow Timo to become the official heir. Either that or they plan to kill Lambo."

Lambo widens his eyes, "They want to kill me?"

"We wouldn't let that happen, Lambo. They'd have to extremely go over our dead bodies."

"Unless they've already started to plan a way to get him out of the picture. We had no idea this was fucking happening. They could easily have killed him already and we wouldn't have known anything about it."

"Hayato, you're scaring Lambo," Yamamoto states while looking at how pale the teen is turning.

"Shit, sorry. Look, you're fine and we'll make sure nothing happens, alright?"

"Tsuna-nii, I don't want to die," Lambo whimpers with a pout before he begins to wail. Gokudera shrinks at the glares he receives from his brothers.

"Lambo, we're not going to let them anywhere near you. Nothing is going to happen to you, little brother."

Lambo wipes his nose at the sound of the doorbell and watches Yamamoto go to answer it.

"Tsuna-nii, I'm scared but I know I can't just hide forever. Will you go with me to see what they want? At least then I have better chances of living."

Before Tsuna can reply, Yamamoto calls out, "Tsuna, the Bovino heir would like to see you."

Lambo quickly wipes his eyes and hopes they aren't too red. Tsuna stands and tells them to go to the living room. Once there, Tsuna sits at the head of the table with his present guardians on either side - Lambo sits right next to him on the left side.

Yamamoto stands by the entrance where he can keep an eye on Timo who enters with a slight smile and Lambo can't help but worry.

"Decimo, I apologize for showing up without an appointment."

Tsuna leans forward on the table and Lambo can feel the power radiating from his brother.

"I take it you're here to pay for the attack on my brother?"

"That was a misunderstanding, Decimo. One which wouldn't have happened if Little Lambo had listened in the first place."

Lambo curls into himself feeling shame and fear come over him. Simply hearing that nickname makes him feel like a little kid instead of the thirteen-year-old he is.

"You are in my home, Timo. Don't make the mistake of thinking you can say what you want without repercussions."

Timo frowns but then smiles again, "I'm sorry, Decimo. I wasn't trying to be rude - it's a force of habit in addressing my cousin in that way. Lambo, I'm sorry. It's not my intention to insult you."

Lambo nods but he knows Timo isn't really sorry and would kill him if he was able to get away with it.

"You know better than to request a member of another famiglia without the boss's approval," Reborn says from his spot near the window.

"I do. It seems Auntie got impatient and wanted Lit-Lambo over as soon as possible to sign some papers."

"Does this have to do with Lambo being the Bovino's heir apparent?"

Timo frowns and Lambo knows this is something nobody was supposed to know about.

"Unfortunately, this is Bovino business and I'm not allowed to discuss it with other famiglias. I can swear no harm will come to Lambo but I do need him to come with me."

Lambo begins to tremble. He knows they don't have to physically hurt him to cause him harm. Tsuna leans back and gently places his hand on Lambo's knee without anybody seeing to offer some comfort.

"I'm sure you'll understand why I don't trust anything you say."

"With all due respect, that is not my problem."

"He is _my_ brother, part of _my_ famiglia and I say he's not going anywhere _without_ me. If you even try to say it's not possible then you _will_ have a problem. Is that understood?"

Lambo watches his brother with awe. He has seen Tsuna be the Tenth plenty of times but seeing him in this form over him? That's always a sight to behold and one he always treasures because it means he really is loved.

Timo clenches his fists but doesn't say anything right away. The nineteen-year-old heir takes a breath then smiles as if nothing happened.

"Very well. I will set-up a meeting between Lady Bovino, myself and yourselves next week so we can straighten this mess out once and for all. Will that be ok, Decimo?"

The way he growls 'Decimo' sends a shiver down Lambo's spine but his brother replies as calm and collected as expected from the Tenth.

"Let me know once it's set,"

"And Juudaime isn't going anywhere without his guardians," Gokudera adds with a snarl.

Once Timo leaves, Lambo slouches in his seat feeling sick to his stomach. He knows he's the Lightning Guardian which means technically he is there to attract trouble away from his family but this is ridiculous!

"Lambo, are you ok?"

"I'm terrified. I know nothing will happen with you there but I'm still scared." He answers with a groan. "I'm such a baby!"

"Lambo," Tsuna begins but is interrupted by Gokudera.

"Damn right you're acting like a fucking baby. I already told you we're not letting anything happen to you so stop acting like you don't trust us to keep you safe, you little shit."

"Hayato, really?" The incredulous tone snaps Gokudera from his speech.

"Ah, sorry, Juudaime! I meant to say he's going to be fine."

"Haha! You sure have a way with words, Hayato."

"Shut up, baseball freak!"

"It's been a while since you've called me that Octopus-head."

Lambo watches his brothers begin to argue with Ryohei laughing at the scene. Tsuna places a hand on his shoulder and Lambo feels comforted knowing he's not alone in this.

"You'll be fine,"

And really, Lambo has no other choice but to believe him.

* * *

The week passes slowly and painfully. Once Tsuna receives notice about the time and date for the meeting, Lambo isn't able to sleep a wink. He has been a nervous wreck which didn't help anyone.

They had agreed to meet at a neutral place where both families felt secure and were allowed to take some people with them. Tsuna, of course, had taken his guardians and Reborn.

Lady Bovino was accompanied by Timo and a few dozen men Lambo knew all too well. Francisco Goda, his former tutor is there as well which makes Lambo want to run away. Unfortunately, Gokudera must have felt his intentions and gently grabs the teen by the shoulders before whispering,

"We're right here. If anybody takes a step towards you, I'll fucking kill them."

Lambo feels strangely comforted by the possible murder and feels himself relax until he sees his mother.

"Lady Bovino, I'd say it's a pleasure to see you again but I don't enjoy meeting with people who hurt my family."

Lambo sees Reborn's eye twitch just a fraction and knows Tsuna is going to pay for his rudeness once they get home.

She looks towards Lambo and the teen feels like shrinking at her glare but Gokudera keeps him standing straight.

"Let's get this over with, shall we?" Timo says with a smile which doesn't fool anyone.

It is decided Tsuna and Reborn will accompany Lambo to meet with Lady Bovino, Timo and Goda inside the room to discuss important matters while the others wait outside.

"You'll be fine, Lambo. You have the world's greatest hitman and Tsuna by your side. Plus, we'll keep watch out here." Yamamoto tells him before walking away.

"Kufufu, I hope we're able to enjoy ourselves a bit."

"Mukuro-sama, not now." Chrome chastises.

Lambo follows after Tsuna with Reborn behind them. Lady Bovino sits at the end of a table set-up just for them and impatiently watches Goda place a few papers in front of her.

"It seems I had forgotten," She looks at Lambo and the teen knows she's wondering what to call him without making things worse for them. "To change the status of heir apparent. All I need is for... _him_ to sign his Bovino inheritance away."

Tsuna asks to see the papers which he and Reborn look over. As they do, Goda smirks at Lambo and the teen feels like crying. Even after all these years Lambo is still afraid of the things he knows they can do to him.

Without looking up from the papers, Tsuna says with a deadly calm, "Please don't look at my brother, it bothers me."

Goda immediately clenches his fists but he does look away. Timo doesn't even look towards the teen.

Once they're done, Tsuna and Reborn nod at each other. "Alright, everything seems to be in order. Lambo, by signing this you'll be officially free of the Bovinos. You will have no claim to any inheritance which includes the title of heir apparent."

Lambo nods in understanding. The last thing he wants is to be affiliated with their twisted group.

"You will also be abandoning my name," Timo adds with a smile.

"What?"

Tsuna places a hand on his shoulder, "Once you sign these papers you will no longer be allowed to call yourself a Bovino."

"You can't have a family name without a family, after all." Lady Bovino states as she admires her nails.

It's obvious she doesn't care about him and she's enjoying getting rid of him. Well, he won't give her the satisfaction.

"I have a family," He whispers. Ok, so it's not a loud proclamation but she hears him.

"How dare you talk back to me, you filth?"

"Cut the act, mother." He says shaking with fear but there is also anger. "I ne-never belonged with you, with the Bovinos. I-I'm better than that and I _do_ have a family. One that accepts me just as I am and doesn't care if I stay average. I don't need to prove myself to them as I did with you. They just accept me."

Lady Bovino stands with fury clearly all over her face. "Do you feel better now that you've had your say? You can be whatever you want as long as it has nothing to do with the Bovinos. My only mistake was letting you live, you piece of-"

"Don't you dare insult my brother, Lady Bovino," Tsuna says slowly standing up as well. "I am here as a courtesy but don't mistake that as giving you permission to speak freely to _my_ brother. He _does_ have a family and we _will_ defend him against anyone." The silent threat lingers in the air.

Timo places a hand on his aunt's arm and whispers something in her ear. The Bovino first lady begrudgingly nods then takes a seat once more. "Sign the papers so we can leave."

Tsuna hands Lambo the papers and a pen. He shows him where to sign and soon they're finished. Timo takes the papers then signs some himself to ascertain himself the new heir apparent.

"Well, it's been great but we need to go now." Timo helps Lady Bovino to the door followed by Goda. The Vongola trio follows after them and heads outside to a spectacular sight.

Lambo blinks once then twice then begins to laugh. There, splayed all over the empty lot are the Bovino men; bloodied and bruised while the Vongola men and Chrome stand over them with cheerful smiles.

"Hiya, Tsuna," Yamamoto greets with a grin.

"What is the meaning of this?" Timo shouts. "This is a declaration of war, Decimo."

"War? We merely agreed to a training exercise which your men brilliantly brought up, kufufu."

"So-sorry, boss." One of the men manages to say between gasps of pain.

"Weaklings," Hibari states.

"It looks like your men might have learned some new moves, you're welcome," Tsuna says with a smile.

Lady Bovino looks furious but says nothing as she makes her way to the limo waiting. Timo instructs Goda to take care of the men then follows his aunt.

Tsuna guides his famiglia to their own limo as he listens to them tell of their short battle. Lambo is smiling brightly as he listens intently as well and laughs when they say how easily they defeated the Bovino men.

"I can see why you don't belong with them, Lambo. You're much stronger than them."

At Yamamoto's comment, Lambo can't help but frown. "I never belonged with them but now it's official. I'm just Lambo now." He says with a weak smile.

Tsuna ruffles his hair, "You were never just Lambo. You've always been incredible, little brother."

"Yeah, ok," He says sarcastically. "Now I'm Lambo Incredible Little Brother. That doesn't sound very good, does it?"

Tsuna laughs, "True, that sounds pretty crappy and long."

"You haven't told him, Juudaime?"

"Told me what?"

Tsuna sighs then gives an albeit nervous smile, "I knew what would happen today and took it upon myself to set some things in motion."

Lambo frowns, "What things?"

"How does Lambo Sawada sound?"

There's nothing but silence for a solid minute and Lambo can see Tsuna begin to fidget. It's incredible how strong and fearless the Tenth can be when Tsunayoshi Sawada still gets nervous and scared.

"Lambo, you don't have to be adopted if you don't want. I should have asked you first but-"

Lambo throws himself at his older brother then begins to cry. "Are you really adopting me? Is mom ok with this? Does she know?"

Tsuna returns the hug, "Yes, mom and dad signed the necessary papers. All that's needed is your name."

"So I'll be the new heir to the Sawadas?"

The others laugh along with Tsuna, "There's only one Juudaime, stupid."

"I know that, Stupidera. He knows what I mean."

"Why you little-"

"Lambo Sawada, it sounds perfect!"

Lambo hugs his brother once more. "I can't believe I'm really your brother now."

"You've always been my brother, no piece of paper can change that."

"I know but it feels good having it made official. I can't wait to tell I-Pin and Fuuta and Kenji and Fran and-"

Lambo continues to ramble on as his family listens with amusement. He may have lost his status as heir apparent to the Bovinos but he sealed his status as a member of this family. Lambo Sawada is here to stay and he can't wait for everyone to know.

* * *

Holy hell is that long...hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Please leave a review letting me know how you feel. I've completely enjoyed reading your reviews and I can't begin to describe how great they make me feel. Your words continue to motivate me to write more and more. Thank you!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	9. I is for Incapacitated

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

Um, hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving if you celebrate it and...here's another letter.

Warning: Language, riddled with mistakes even though Grammarly checked it over and I think that's it.

Enjoy!

* * *

" _Lambo, are you sure you'll be fine? It's the first time you'll be home completely alone."_

" _It's only a week, mom. I'll be fine, I promise. Besides, what's the worst that can happen?"_

Lambo sighs as he thinks back to the last conversation he had with his mom. Nana had gone away for a week with Iemitsu and wouldn't return until Sunday evening. With Tsuna on some mission or other with their siblings, Lambo had been trusted to stay by himself.

The teen scoffs, this is their fault for thinking he could be trusted to be left alone. The very next day after his mom left, he'd gotten hurt helping a stranger. It had not been his fault but he doubts his brothers will agree.

A schoolmate had been walking on the railing of the bridge near their school and had slipped. Lambo, who had been the closest, had grabbed her without a second thought. The teen had pulled her back to safety but not without tearing a stomach muscle. He'd told everyone he was fine otherwise his brother would have been contacted and the last thing he wanted was a babysitter/mother hen smothering him to death during his only week alone. Kenji told him that was a bad idea but Lambo could take care of himself.

He knew he wouldn't be able to move in his condition so he'd fabricated a story for his school - excusing him for the rest of the week. He isn't stupid, he knows the school will want verification but by the time mom comes back, he'll be better and will be good enough to deal with the consequences.

Lambo had managed to climb the stairs somehow but knew he wouldn't be going back down anytime soon. He had been exhausted, panting and covered in sweat from the trek up. Thankfully, he had most of what he needed on the second floor.

After taking some painkillers, Lambo had slept the rest of the day away. He'd woken up the next morning to the sound of his alarm, having forgotten to turn it off. He wouldn't be attending class due to his injury, after all. In fact, just stretching his arm to the alarm clock had sent a wave of pain across his abdomen and knew he wouldn't be moving much after that unless necessary.

Like going to the restroom and taking a shower because he refused to smell of sweat. Once he finished taking the slowest and longest shower of his life, Lambo had eaten a granola bar then taken another dose of painkillers before sliding back under the covers. He figured he'd spend most of the day in bed again. So much for enjoying a week alone. He closed his eyes and hoped he was feeling better when he woke up again.

* * *

Agony, incredible agony is what Lambo feels when he begins to wake up. He's also exhausted even though he's sure he's been asleep for weeks. His body feels like it will never move again. Slowly, his eyes flutter open but he shuts them close when the light sends an excruciating pain through his head. His trembling hands close around his temples, hoping to squash the torture away but it does nothing for the discomfort.

His mom should have taken him with her to...where had she gone? That's not important - he needs to know what's going on here, right now.

What had happened, where is he, and is he safe? Not knowing the answer to these questions worry the thirteen-year-old. Had he accepted a dare to jump from the roof again? No, he isn't stupid enough to make the same mistake three times. Whatever the dare had been to put him in this situation, the reward had not been worth it, though. That's for sure.

He feels like his head has been cracked open - the blood running down his face corroborating his theory, and he's sick to his stomach. If he's dying again, he's sure his brothers are going to have him institutionalized like they'd promised the last time he had been hurt. He takes a few deep breaths - which is difficult to do and hurts like hell - to calm the panic threatening to explode. Lambo tries to open his eyes once more to try and assess his situation. He needs to figure out what's going on in order to know what to do next.

Through half-closed eyes and blurry vision, Lambo can see he's on the floor - his back against the wall. What surprises him though, is he's at the foot of the stairs in his own home. Had he taken a tumble again? How the heck had that happened?

The house is empty. He's not sure how he knows but he's certain he's home alone so shouting for help will only make his headache worse. Besides, if even one other person _was_ home, they would have come immediately at the sound of their youngest crashing down the stairs. Which brings another question, where the hell is everybody?

Well, it's not like it matters. He's not in the mood to entertain anybody because he feels sick to his stomach. Hell, just breathing hurts. He hopes he's not coming down with something. Maybe he should take a nap, mom says sleep helps with recovery, right? Thankfully, he doesn't have any pressing matters to deal with. If anybody needs him, the maid will wake him up. With that in mind, Lambo leans his head back against the wall, ready to sleep.

Then quickly sits back, fighting the terrible wave of nausea as he does. Maid? He hasn't had a maid since his Bovino days. Ok, he is not well and needs to find help. Asap!

"Head injuries are bad, very bad. Where did I get a head injury?" He mumbles, his eyes blinking rapidly as he struggles to gather his thoughts. His head is a jumbled mess, nothing is making sense and all he wants to do is sleep. Unfortunately, he knows he shouldn't do that until he's been checked over and he's sure he'll wake up again.

Not to mention the horrible throbbing coming from his leg. Looking down, he can't see what would be causing the pain but he's sure something's damaged. Honestly, nobody else seems to get into as much trouble as he does, it's not fair. No wonder they want to lock him in a room surrounded by padding.

Looking around, he notices the house is quiet which means he's home alone. Obviously, otherwise they would have already made their way down at the...wait, didn't he say this already?

"Not good, I need to call-" He winces at the throbbing pain in his head. He feels dizzy, confused, and...where is he? Who is he supposed to call and why? Lambo looks around, he's on the floor - had he dozed off at the bottom of the stairs? That's weird even for him.

Looking down at himself, he can see his hands are bloodied, where did he get blood from? His shirt has blood on it, was he attacked? Upon closer inspection, he realizes the blood is coming from somewhere on his head - head wounds bleed a lot, he thinks. He needs to find something to stop it. Slowly, he starts to turn his leg, but the shooting pain halts his movements. Through dazed eyes, he can see his foot is a bit swollen. "Sprained ankle, again. Great…"

He feels sick. He gags, his stomach disobeying his orders to stay calm. Lambo can't stop himself - he throws up. The burning sensation in his throat is nothing compared to the painful ache in his ribs. Could he have fractured or broken a rib without realizing it? He has his eyes closed as he vomits whatever he had in his stomach, the acidic smell making everything worse. His head is pounding, his chest feels like it's going to rip apart, and now he smells like Gokudera last Friday night after being dumped.

Tears are mixed in with blood on his face, he's sure he looks terrible. Laying his head back, Lambo wonders if he'll get in trouble for dirtying the carpet. Well, in this case, all he can do is sleep and hope everything is some horrible nightmare. Lambo closes his eyes and knows no more.

* * *

 _Bzz_

 _Bzz_

 _Bzz_

Lambo groans at the sound. Why is he being woken up on his day off? He raises his arm - which feels like it weighs a ton - to swat away the annoying fly buzzing around his head as he tries to stand but cries out at the pain radiating from his leg.

"What?"

He licks his dry lips, the copper taste letting him know something is wrong before he even opens his eyes. Once he opens them, he regrets it. He's at home, that much is obvious. He's at the bottom of the stairs, his head is pounding, and blood is oozing from somewhere near his temple. Then, the cherry to his misery, he's covered in vomit.

"What happened?"

He tries to remember how he got here but his thoughts are all fuzzy - fog making it impossible to organize his thoughts. Was he in an accident? Lambo looks around, the lights are off but there is still light coming from outside. How long has he been here?

"Mom? Is anybody here?" He tries to shout but his head feels like it's about to split open - if it hasn't already- so he manages only a whisper. It doesn't matter, though. He's sure if somebody was home, they would have seen him already. They would have heard him crashing down the stairs.

"Talk 'bout deja vu," He slurs when he leans back, his head spinning at the small movement.

Lambo puts his arm around his chest, did he hurt his ribs or something? He really wants to know what the hell happened.

 _Bzz_

 _Bzz_

 _Bzz_

There's the fly again, he thinks. The teen opens his eyes. When had he closed them? He pats his pocket and pulls out the fly making the terrible noise. He blinks at the small device. It's not a fly - it's a phone?

He stares at it for a second, taking his mind a minute to remember what a phone is for then presses the green blinking circle. Lambo hears a familiar voice but can't make out what it's saying. Cautiously, he puts the device to his ear and winces at the loud noise.

" _-and we've been trying to get ahold of you all day."_

Lambo recognizes the voice. The teen knows he's talked to him many times but for the life of him, he can't remember the name that goes with the voice.

"Am I late for something?"

He tries to rack his brain for answers but all he comes up with is fog filled thoughts. He's also getting cold. Why do these things always happen to him?

" _Late? Lambo, the school called saying you told them you were taking the rest of the week off because you were going with mom. I know she didn't take you so what is going on?"_

School - he was taking a week off, wasn't he? "Why did they call you? Mom is the one on the contact information."

" _...because she's on vacation and I'm on there as well."_

"Oh, where did mom go?"

"With dad to Italy... _Lambo, are you ok? You sound out of breath and a little off. Are you feeling alright?"_

Is he feeling alright? Lambo doesn't think so. In fact, he's pretty sure he's sick. His mouth is dry, his body aches all over and he's sure he needs a shower. Maybe a nap will make it all better. Sleep is the cure for everything, right?

"I just need a nap to get rid of the blood,"

"What _? Hey Lambo, what's wrong?"_

"Tsuna-nii," That's his name! Tsunayoshi Sawada, his big brother, and Tenth Vongola Boss. "I don' feel so g'd'. I thin' I see blood?" His slurred speech lets Lambo know he needs sleep more than he needs a shower.

" _Something's wrong, pull up his location."_

"Loca, locasi, location. Thas'-that's a place, right?"

Lambo almost throws up again but he manages to swallow the puke back down. Realizing what he's done makes him sick and this time he does hurl. He can feel tears streaming down his face, his body hurting all over as he empties whatever is left in his stomach.

" _Lambo? Lambo, we're on our way."_

The teen is breathing heavily, his chest feels tight, and he's sure he's having a heart attack. When he hears Tsuna, is that his name? Say he's on his way, for some reason Lambo doesn't want his friend to see him like this. Wait, his brother. Tsuna is his brother?

"Am ok, don' come ovr',"

Lambo doesn't wait for a reply. The teen is too tired to continue this conversation so he puts his phone down, ignoring the shouting coming from the speaker, and rests his head against the wall. He's out before his eyes fully closed.

* * *

He's in trouble.

Lambo quickly sits up in his spot, sending a wave of pain through his stomach. His vision is blurry and the world won't stop spinning but he manages to straighten without falling over. Looking around, he can tell he's at home but doesn't know why he was sleeping on the floor instead of his bed. He must have been tired, he guesses. Lambo feels sick when a horrid smell reaches his senses. How did he get vomit on himself? That's not important, he knows he's in major trouble and needs to leave before, well, somebody gets him. His chest hurts, but he ignores it as he tries to stand up using the wall for support. His legs are shaking from pain, his left one feels like it's on fire but he pushes through the pain.

Had he gotten in a fight with a train?

Before he can try searching his brain for answers, he hears a car come to a screeching halt outside. The teen is worried for some unknown reason but he stays in place even at the sound of the heavy footsteps running to the door. It bursts open, revealing four men looking worried as ever. Lambo tries to smile.

"Welcome home," He frowns. "I think?"

After that, everything happens in a blur. At least, it feels like it happens in a blur but he thinks it's because he fades in and out of consciousness as the men drive him to the hospital. Once he's cleaned up, there's nothing but blood tests, x-rays, and stupid questions. Seriously, he can barely remember his name and they want to know what happened? He wasn't even there...wait, he was. Damn, this concussion is really messing with his head.

After all the tests are complete, he's taken to a private room where Lambo can finally get some much-needed sleep. Once the nurse leaves, with a promise of checking in on him often, the teen is furious to know he's not tired anymore. After wanting nothing more than to get some sleep, now he just wants to know what in the hell happened.

"Tsuna-nii, I'm tired and I feel like crap. Why can't I fall asleep?" He grumbles with a wince when he accidentally moves his injured leg. According to the doctor, he'd sprained it when he fell down the stairs. No, duh. He could have told them that.

His brother offers a small smile while gently running his fingers through Lambo's hair from his spot next to the bed. "I'm sorry, Lambo. I think you went through too much excitement once we brought you here but I'm sure the medicine will kick in soon."

"Hopefully. Where did the others go?" He's sure they told him but his brain doesn't seem to be working properly.

Tsuna frowns and Lambo's sure he's asked this before. "They're back at the house, trying to figure out what happened. When we got there the living room was a mess. Hayato and Takeshi stayed back to see what they could find. Ryohei and I brought you to the hospital but he just stepped out to call the others."

"I think I was involved in a fight. I think I lost and got my ass kicked. How embarrassing," No matter how hard he tries, Lambo can't remember what happened but from the evidence left behind, he got beat up.

"Lambo, you fell down the stairs and hit your head pretty bad. You're suffering from a serious concussion and couldn't even remember us for several minutes. As long as you're alive after that, I don't care if you lost."

Lambo groans in embarrassment. How could he have lost so bad, though? Hibari is going to kill him once he gets released. He looks up at his brother and frowns. "Did the others go home?"

As soon as the question leaves his lips, Lambo regrets it. "I'm sorry, you just answered that."

"Don't apologize, the doctor said you were going to be having some trouble organizing your thoughts for a while."

"Great, I get to know how Haya-nii feels every day."

"What was that, brat?"

Lambo turns to the door and smiles as three other brothers walk into his room. One of them holding a file of some kind.

"I hope that's not homework, Haya-nii, because I'm not sure I can do two plus two let alone anything else."

The Vongola Tenth laughs as he is handed the file.

"Tch, you can't do simple math even when you're fine."

"Tsuna-nii, Stupidera is making me feel bad," He whines with an overly exaggerated pout.

"Hayato, Lambo's sick. At least wait till he's well enough to defend himself." Tsuna scolds without looking up from the papers he's going through.

"Haha! I love when you get in trouble You look like a kid when you make that face."

"Shut up, you idiot! At least I don't have the brain of a toddler."

"How are you feeling, Lambo?" Ryohei asks, ignoring the other two. Lambo hates how concerned the boxer looks. He hates worrying his brothers but it seems that's what he's best at.

"I feel like I fell down a flight of stairs. Did you guys find anything?" He asks with a yawn. The medicine must be kicking in but he is not going to sleep without knowing anything.

"The house was broken into," Tsuna answers.

"What?"

"Somebody broke in to rob the house thinking it was empty. They weren't expecting you to be home since you should have been at school." Gokudera adds with a glare.

"It's not my fault, Stupidera."

"If you had been at school, you wouldn't have gotten hurt more than you already were."

Lambo looks from Gokudera to Tsuna. "I was already hurt?"

"Kenji told us you saved a girl from falling over a bridge. You tore a stomach muscle which is why you're sore. You were extremely brave but foolish not to ask for medical help."

Lambo feels his face go red from embarrassment. He'd saved a life - can't even remember it, but here he was being lectured for being irresponsible.

"You should have told us right away, Lambo," Tsuna adds with disappointment lacing his voice.

"I didn't want to be a bother." He says not quite sure that's why he kept quiet.

"You didn't want to be watched over, you mean."

That sounds more likely. "Ok, that too but I don't see how being pushed down the stairs was my fault."

Yamamoto chuckles darkly at this and Lambo gulps. "According to Hibe - that's one of the thieves, you fell down on your own. They were taking some things from the living room when you came tumbling down the stairs."

"Why the hell would I do that?" The teen wraps his arm around his stomach. Shouting seems to make the pain worse.

"Lambo, calm down." Tsuna orders, placing a hand on the teen's shoulder. "We don't know the full story yet. Kyoya and Mukuro are interrogating the thieves as we speak and will let us know once they know everything."

"I think you did fall on your own, though. The doctor said there was a painkiller in your system, you know they make you act fucking stupid."

"They do not! I just get a little woozy…" He lamely defends. It wasn't a secret, painkillers made the teen drowsy and weak as a baby deer.

"You must have heard the commotion downstairs and went to check it out but accidentally fell down the stairs. It's extremely possible that's what happened."

Lambo feels like crying. In the end, it had all been his fault.

"It's not your fault, Lambo. It was just bad luck but it might not have been this bad if you'd told us you were hurt and hadn't been home alone."

"I was incapacitated by my own actions." He says with a sob.

"It will only be for a week or two. You don't have to worry about anything, we'll make sure you don't need anything."

"That's the problem. You're going to be watching me like hawk zeroing on its prey. I won't be able to wipe my nose without somebody offering to do it for me. You know I don't like being babied."

"Could have fooled me," Gokudera grumbles but tries to hide it behind a cough at Tsuna's exasperated glance. Lambo just lies back down, a pathetic frown on his face.

The others in the room sigh, a depressed Lambo was never a good Lambo. "How about we get you some ice cream later and we'll make sure not to hover too much?"

Lambo carefully snuggles into his blanket as best as he can without hurting himself too much. "Yeah, right - I already know that's not going to happen. I'll take the ice cream, though."

He thinks he hears his brothers laugh but he doesn't care. He's too tired and is finally able to catch up on some much-needed sleep. He'll deal with his incapacitation later.

* * *

I could not, for the life of me, come up with one specific topic for "I" because I kept going back and forth between a bunch. I'm still not happy with this but I figured I'd settle for a short, simple chapter so I could focus on the next letter.

I'm actually afraid to ask for a review…

I am working on a new one-shot for my 20th story, though. Whoo! A small milestone but an important one for me. Anywho, let me know what you think?

Also, I seriously and honestly completely forgot I had another incomplete story...you can guess where my motivation is for that one. I'll get back to it because I already know how it ends, I just need to work on getting there. Not that anybody misses it. Lol It's ok.

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	10. J is for Jealousy

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

Warning: Language, violence, mistakes everywhere, Mafia behavior, oc death.

Thank you, Grammarly for helping make this readable. I'll go over it again at a later time.

Without further ado, J is for...

* * *

"I'll see you tomorrow!"

Lambo waves to his classmate as he walks out of the school gate. He loosens his tie, still not used to the restricting feeling of his school uniform - then shoves his hands into his pants pockets as he begins his walk home.

The day had passed in a blur with Lambo feeling anxious - worried over something he wasn't aware of. He had looked at his phone several times throughout the day almost in anticipation - thinking he'd get some bad news but none came. The preteen knew better than to ignore his instincts and remained alert just in case.

Which is why he immediately notices the black sedan down the street. He stops walking, wondering if he should run away, call his brothers, or continue on his way. There is always the possibility it isn't there for him, after all.

As Lambo begins to walk once more, two men step out of the vehicle - both wearing nice suits. Mafiosi, he thinks. Once a little closer, Lambo notices the emblem and holds back a sigh. Not only are they mafiosi, but they're also Bovino.

"If this is about Timo's car getting egged, I know nothing about it." Lambo lazily states and is proud his voice sounds steady.

One of the men, the one with brown hair in a bun who Lambo will refer to as Idiot One, narrows his eyes but does not say anything. The other one, Idiot Two with blond locks, seems to be speaking for both of them.

"Lambo Bovino, your presence has been requested by -"

"I'm pretty sure the Tenth told you guys not to bother me anymore. Yare, yare, you should know better." The preteen interrupts as he picks his ear.

"Listen, kid. We don't want to be here either but we have to deliver a message."

"Oh? From the Don or Lady Bovino?"

"Neither. This is a message from Kensuke-sama."

Lambo stands a little straighter at the name. He hadn't heard it in over seven years so this can't be good. He'd always been close to his grandpa, probably closer than he had been with his parents but not even that had managed to keep them in contact with each other.

"Grandpa? What's the message?"

Idiot One steps forward, "He wishes to see you immediately. We are to drive you to the estate if it's ok with you. You can also notify Sawada-san and he's welcomed to join but we don't have much time and need to leave _now_."

Much time for what? There is obviously something going on but it can't be something to hurt him otherwise they wouldn't be allowing him to call Tsuna. His grandpa was always good to Lambo, even though he was a little strict. Although, he really hadn't been that strict since he would always give him candy and other treats behind his parent's back. Ok, so Grandpa spoiled him a lot. The last time the preteen saw the old man, Lambo had received his orders to kill Reborn. His grandpa hadn't been happy but he couldn't disagree with the Boss.

"What aren't you telling me?"

The men looked at each other, having a silent conversation. Lambo can feel the worry from earlier return in full force. "What's going on?"

Idiot One answers, "Kensuke-sama is ill, gravely ill. The reason we're here now is that he wants to say goodbye."

Lambo isn't sure how to reply. Gravely ill, that means he's dying, right? He hadn't even known his grandpa was sick. How long had he been sick for? He doesn't realize he voiced his last question out loud.

"Almost six months,"

Lambo looks towards the ground, trying to calm down. He can practically feel his blood boil as he begins to process the news. His grandpa had been sick and nobody in the damn Bovinos had bothered to let him know until was too late. "Why the hell didn't anybody tell me?"

"You can ask Timo-sama once we get there. We need to go now if you want to make it in time."

Lambo briskly leads the way to the car, pulling out his phone as he does. He slides into the back seat, buckling up as the voice answers.

" _Hi, Lambo. Are you on your way home?"_

Lambo is furious. How dare they keep something like this from him? They all knew Lambo and his grandpa were close. They knew Lambo would have wanted to know. How dare they?!

" _Lambo, are you there?"_

"Tsuna-nii, are you at home?" He asks in what he hopes is his normal voice. Of course, Tsuna can always tell something's up even when Lambo tries to hide it.

" _Not at the moment. I'm with some of the others visiting Shoichi. Is everything ok?"_

Great. That means they're across town and will take a while to join him at the Bovino Estate. It's fine. He'll see his grandpa and then kick Timo's ass for keeping him in the dark. He had never felt this furious to where fear was nowhere to be found.

" _Lambo, what's wrong?"_

"I'll explain everything later but I need you to pick me up at the Bovino Estate."

" _At the Bovinos? Are you in trouble?"_

No, but the Bovinos will be. "My grandpa asked to see me so I'm on my way. Idiots One and Two said to call and let you know to meet me there."

Lambo can feel the anger radiating from said idiots up front but he doesn't care. They know better than to hurt him especially when he's on the phone with Tsuna.

" _I'm already leaving but I won't be there for another thirty or forty minutes. Can you wait until I get there?"_

Lambo shakes his head, "I can't. They won't do anything against me, I just need to see my grandpa. I'll be fine, Tsuna-nii."

"We're here," Idiot Two says.

Lambo looks out the window and feels a bit of dread at seeing the estate. Unfortunately for the Bovinos, he feels more anger than fear. That doesn't mean he's not worried things may take a turn for the worst. Timo will hopefully not do anything stupid to upset Lambo more than he already is.

"Tsuna-nii, I gotta go. We just got here,"

" _Be careful, we'll be there as soon as possible."_

"I will. Bye,"

" _Wait, let me talk to one of the idiots before you go."_

Lambo gets out of the car when Idiot One, the bun guy, opens the door for him. "The Tenth wants to speak with you."

Idiot One answers the phone with trepidation. Lambo can't hear what Tsuna is saying but judging but how quickly Idiot One loses color, the preteen is sure a threat has been given. Lambo reaches the doors quickly but stops when Idiot One calls out to him to return the phone.

The doors open and a maid offers a bow, "Bovino-sama, I'm to lead you to your grandfather's room."

Without wasting more time, Lambo follows. They reach the third floor then walk down a familiar hallway. Lambo can see several men standing outside a room and knows that's where his grandpa is staying. One of them knocks on the door to announce his arrival.

By the time Lambo reaches the door, Timo steps out with a smile. "Welcome home, Little Lambo. Hope the drive was to your liking."

It takes all the courage he has and anger he feels not to show any fear to his cousin. "I'm here for my grandpa."

Timo motions towards the door using his head, "He's in there."

Lambo pushes through, ignoring Timo who follows behind him. He feels his heartbreak at the sight of his beloved grandpa laying in bed. The man who once stood tall and proud without fear of anything now lays with a deathly gray pallor. He looks thin and weak, nothing like before. He's wearing an oxygen mask and an IV which makes him look that much worse. Lambo can't believe this is his grandpa.

He reaches the man's side and gently picks up the wrinkled hand before putting it up to his face. "Grandpa, it's Lambo. I'm-" His throat tightens. "I'm home."

The man makes a noise which Lambo isn't sure is all too good. It sounds like his grandpa is struggling to breathe which hurts Lambo's soul.

"He's trying to talk to you. How weird, I didn't think he'd still be alive by the time you got here, to be honest."

Lambo will deal with Timo later. He ignores his cousin's words and focuses on his grandpa. "I'm sorry for not coming sooner but I'm here now." Oh, how he wants to tell his grandpa he'd just found out but he doesn't want him to go feeling upset.

"La-Lambo,"

Lambo feels like something is squeezing his heart at the raspy voice. "Don't talk, Grandpa, it's ok. I'm here,"

"I'm...sorry,"

Lambo can feel his eyes water. "You have nothing to apologize for, Grandpa. _I'm_ sorry I couldn't be stronger for you. _I'm_ sorry for not being here when you needed me the most but I want you to know I'm happy. There's so much I want to tell you, Grandpa. The most important thing is I have a lot of big brothers and sisters now who look out for me and they love me a lot. I'm happy, grandpa. I'm really happy," He manages to say between tears.

Lambo continues to speak to him for almost twenty minutes. He tells him about his siblings, his mama, and a quick summary of his adventures. He begins to tell him more but that's when he realizes his grandpa has stopped breathing.

"Grandpa?"

Hold it in. Please, just hold it in…

Lambo gently places his grandpa's hand back to his side. The preteen then leans over his grandpa and gives the only Bovino who ever cared for him a kiss on the forehead. He tries to say he loves him, he really does but his throat is completely closed. Lambo hopes his grandpa knew how much the preteen loved him.

After a minute of standing over his grandpa, Lambo bows then heads to the door. His grandpa is gone. Kensuke Bovino is dead.

Lambo walks past Timo without a word, he walks down the hall without looking at the men but not once does he lower his head. He reaches the top of the stairs but stops at his name being called. He doesn't bother turning around.

"Thanks for showing up. The old man kept asking for you so I'm glad he got his last wish to see you come true."

Lambo knows he should just walk away. The last thing he wants is to cause trouble with his grandpa down the hall but he's too angry to think too much about it.

"You're a piece of shit," He says turning to glare at Timo. For the first time in a long time, Lambo doesn't feel fear towards Timo. He only feels hatred; raw hatred. He wants to hurt Timo, wants to make him beg for his life for not having given Lambo more time with his grandpa.

"Jae and Lucas told me you were mad because I didn't tell you sooner. Honestly, what do you care anyway? You hadn't seen him in over seven years. I didn't think you even remembered him."

"That's bullshit and you know it!"

"If it's any consolation, he never forgot you. No matter how bad his Alzheimer's got, every now and then he'd call for you. It was always Lambo this or Lambo that. The old man couldn't let you go even though you were already gone."

"Alzheimer's? Why didn't you tell me?"

Timo chuckles, "It's not like you would have been allowed to see him. You know Lady Bovino would never have allowed it. The only reason you're here now is thanks to Uncle. He took Auntie on a shopping trip just so you could come to say goodbye. I guess he pitied the old man."

"You should have told me,"

"You both got what you wanted, closure. The one good thing I got out of this is that now I'll stop hearing your fucking name all the time. 'Where's Lambo? I remember when Lambo this and that.' Every fucking day! I'm glad he's finally dead."

Lambo glares at Timo, barely able to restrain himself. "You were jealous,"

"Ha, me? Jealous of you? Don't make me laugh. Now, leave before I decide to kick your ass."

"You never liked how close Grandpa and I were. You know if it had been up to him, I would have stayed as Bovino heir. He didn't think I was weak, he knew I could have made this damn family better. He never liked you and everyone knows why."

"Leave, Little Lambo. I won't tell you again."

"Because you're a worthless piece of shit who will one day ruin the Bovino name,"

Lambo knows the punch to the face is coming but he still doesn't block it even though he could have. Once Timo's fist collides with his face, Lambo uses all Hibari's taught him to pin his cousin to the ground. Lambo may only be twelve but Hibari's training is harsh and unforgiving which has made him quite strong.

He lands a couple of punches to Timo's face along with a few kicks to the stomach when he hears the click of several guns. He stops moving, the only sound heard is the footsteps of more men coming and Lambo's own hard breathing. He looks up at the men who are all pointing their guns towards him and smiles.

"Law of Mafia, he hit me first so I had the right to defend myself."

Timo pushes the younger boy away and quickly stands up. "You idiot!" He says kicking Lambo who hadn't managed to stand up. The young Vongola falls back with a grunt.

"I'll kill you for this," Timo growls.

"Careful, Timo. Your jealousy is showing," Lambo can't help but throw at his cousin whose face is bright red with fury.

Timo approaches Lambo once more but doesn't get very far.

"I'm sure there's a very good reason for my brother being on the floor with blood on his face but I don't care to hear it. Get away from him. Now."

Lambo looks back to see his brothers reaching the top of the stairs; Tsuna, Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Ryohei. None looking pleased. The adrenaline rush seems to leave as fast as it came, leaving Lambo feeling exhausted. He wants to curl into a ball and fall asleep - forget everything that's happened today but his brothers seem to have other ideas.

Ryohei helps him stand then gives him a quick once over. "I'll treat the wounds in the car. Tsuna, I'll take him now."

At Tsuna's nod, Ryohei and Yamamoto help him down the stairs and out the door. Once inside the car, Ryohei continues his questioning while Yamamoto pulls out the first aid kit. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

With a nod, Lambo grabs at his shirt over his heart. "It hurts here,"

Ryohei wraps his little brother in a tight embrace. "I'm sorry, I can't make that go away with any medication no matter how much I want to."

"I'm sorry, Lambo. The maid told us about your grandpa when we arrived," Yamamoto says while handing the kit to Ryohei.

Lambo nods to let them know he heard but doesn't feel much like talking. A couple of minutes later, Tsuna and Gokudera begin their walk down the steps outside the estate.

Lambo watches as Tsuna calls out to one of the Bovino men standing nearby. Lambo realizes it's Idiot One, the man-bun sporting jerk. He sees Idiot One nod then without any hesitation, Tsuna punches him hard across the face, sending the man flying back.

Once Tsuna and Gokudera reach the car, Lambo needs to ask, "Why did you hit him? What did he say?"

Tsuna buckles up next to him while Ryohei sits on the other side; Gokudera drives with Yamamoto on the passenger side.

"I asked him if he was the one I spoke with on the phone and he said yes,"

Lambo waits for the rest but Tsuna is busy applying some ointment to their youngest's cheek. "Tsuna-nii, why did you hit him?"

With a smirk, Tsuna replies, "When I spoke with him, I told him to wait for me by the front steps so I'd know who he was. I then informed him that if you were returned with so much as a scratch, he'd pay for it."

Lambo laughs. His brother could be a little overprotective.

"I'm sorry about your grandpa,"

Lambo nods, feeling his throat tighten again, his eyes beginning to water as well. Tsuna wraps an arm around his little brother's shoulders.

"We'll talk once we get home and you can tell me everything that happened over a cup of hot chocolate. Then we'll plan on how to make Timo pay for laying his hands on my little brother."

"He was jealous, Tsuna-nii. He hates me because he is jealous,"

"He has every right to be jealous. That damn piece of shit knows you're better than he'll ever be." Gokudera says from up front.

"Haha, we all know that. If Timo didn't know that already then I'm sure he will after he sees the black eye and busted lip Lambo gave him."

"You have an extreme right hook!"

"You handled yourself great, little brother,"

Lambo feels the love of his brothers fill him with warmth. He really is happy where he's at.

" _See, Grandpa? I am more than happy. I'm loved just like you always wanted for me. Hey, Grandpa, I hope you saw how easily I beat Timo up."_

* * *

Um, ta-da? I hope you liked reading this even though it was kinda sad. Working with seniors I see a lot of families saying goodbye to their loved ones and it never gets easier. I work in the memory care unit so I think that makes everything a little worse.

Thank you for the continued support even though I take forever to update. As long as I have you guys in my life, I'll continue to share my little world of bromance. Thank you in advance for reviewing!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner!


	11. K is for Ketamine

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

This is a little different from my other stuff, hope it goes ok.

Warning: LANGUAGE! It's told in Gokudera's point of view so there is a lot of bad language used. A lot. Also, plenty of mistakes, I'm sure. I will go over it at a later time as always. Probably. If I messed up on any medical stuff, I apologize. I looked it up but one never knows.

Without further ado, K is for…

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This is all my fault. Damn it all to hell, this is all my fault. I am the worst brother in the world for having put the kid through this. I can't seem to do anything right when it comes to the annoying brat.

"There's no doubt about it, Lambo. I'm afraid your wrist is indeed broken."

No shit, I think to myself. The kid's hand is the size of a golf ball; not to mention it looks completely disfigured, and the smallest movement makes the thirteen-year-old whimper. I'm sure if Juudaime was here instead of myself and Hibari, the kid would be bawling his eyes out.

"I'm not going to lose my hand, right?" Lambo asks with round, pitiful eyes. I can see him trembling but I don't know if it's from pain or fear - probably both.

It's obvious he needs some comforting. "Don't be stupid," I tell him. "Does your hand _look_ like it's falling off any time soon?"

"I don't know, Stupidera, that's why I'm asking."

"What's next?" Hibari asks, stopping an argument from forming. The bastard is standing across the room, arms over his chest acting as if it's a chore being here. Well, that's too damn bad seeing as he's the reason we're here. Well, half the reason.

Lambo had been goofing off instead of doing his homework so I'd taken him to the Foundation for training as punishment. Hibari had been more than happy to burn off some energy but the idiot kid had been distracted during their spar which had led to this.

The doctor looks at the x-rays once again before answering Hibari's question. "It's a clean break but I'm going to need to reset it. After that, we'll use a splint until the swelling goes down then move on to a cast; hopefully next week. You'll wear that for about six weeks, maybe more. It should heal nicely, though, as long as you don't do anything strenuous."

"He won't, I'll make sure of it,"

Lambo and I stare at Hibari as if he's grown another head. I could be mistaken but I'm sure there was a hint of concern there. Who is he and where is our psychotic brother?

He notices us staring, and I can see his jaw clench along with his fists. "A weakling like him won't be able to do anything even if he wanted to."

There he is. "He'd be fine if you hadn't pushed so much during training," I can't stand the kid most of the time but I won't let the bastard make him feel worse than he already does. Especially when it's Hibari's fault.

"If he hadn't been distracted he wouldn't be here,"

"If _you_ had taken it easier on him, none of us would be here." I can feel my anger beginning to build. A perfectly good day ruined because this idiot couldn't control his fucking strength. Speaking of strength, I still need to let Juudaime know what's happened.

"Uh, Lambo will need a shot of Ketamine, it's an anesthetic for when I reset his wrist. I'll come back once that's administered. He won't be completely under but he'll be numb enough not to feel any pain. He might be a bit out of it for a while after that. I'll uh, be right back."

The doctor quickly and wisely leaves the room. Lambo sniffs, "I'm sorry,"

I hold back a growl. I know it wasn't his fault but this is too frustrating. "It's not your fault - stop crying about it."

"Then whose fault is it?" Alright, Hibari is now just being a dick on purpose. Before I can reply, he heads towards the door. "I'll wait outside."

He's gone before I can protest. "Fucking asshole,"

I take a seat next to the kid as we wait for whoever is going to give him the anesthetic. Lambo is holding his right arm against his chest in obvious discomfort; the wrist almost seems to be pulsing in pain.

"I really am sorry, Stupidera. I know it was my fault for not paying attention."

I roll my eyes at the annoying nickname but let it slide without comment. He's the only one who gets away with calling me that. I remember the first time he used it, I was furious. There I was trying to become Juudaime's right-hand man and this little brat shows up out of nowhere. He was annoying, rude, dangerously stupid, but he served to keep us on our toes, that's for sure. I'd never say it out loud but the cow brat grew on me before I knew it. Now, I can't see our famiglia without him.

"Tsk, don't apologize. Just pay attention next time."

When he doesn't reply, I sigh. "What's bugging you?" Boy, do I want to light a cigarette.

"Nothing," He immediately replies. It's an obvious lie. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's when I'm clearly being lied to. I try to control my temper since I want to know what's been bothering this kid. If I start shouting, he's just going to close up and we'll never know.

"Spit it out, stupid. You've been acting like a total space cadet for the past week, everyone's noticed."

"Everyone?" He asks with slight trepidation.

"Juudaime was going to talk to you tomorrow if you didn't bring it up on your own. So, what the fuck is it?"

Lambo looks down at his lap. "I ran into some Bovino last week."

I hold my breath at the mention of that piece of shit famiglia. They may be considered allies but we all knew it was barely there. One wrong move on their part and we'd kill them all without hesitation.

"Did they hurt you?"

I know I sound murderous but the brat knows it's not directed at him - I hope so at least, but I don't really care. If they so much as pushed Lambo, there will be hell to pay.

"No, they didn't even see me, I promise."

I feel some tension leave my body but I'm still ready to go and kick some ass if that's needed. "What happened, then?"

"I overheard them talking about my parents. They said," Lambo sniffs then wipes his nose on the sleeve of his shirt. "They said mom, Lady Bovino, is pregnant."

Fuck. I immediately think of how this news will affect Lambo, all the ways this can go wrong. I nod, letting him know I heard.

"They said she's considering to terminate the pregnancy because she doesn't want another me. They don't want another failure."

If she does go through with it, that would be one less Bovino to worry about, if anyone asks me. Of course, I'm not asked so I don't give him my opinion. "There's nothing you can do about that,"

"I know that, but I can't help but wonder what if, you know? I might have a baby brother or sister, or I might be the reason Mom gets rid of it. I would love a younger sibling, Haya-nii."

Great, he's using my name. Fuck, what do I say to that? It's not like we're going to make her have the evil spawn. Worse, if she does keep it… I choose not to mention the Bovinos would most definitely not let Lambo anywhere near the poisonous fruit of their loins. Timo would raise the little hellion to burn down the world with Lambo in it. Well, I can't think about what if's just yet.

"Another one of you, huh? I don't think we could handle that much annoyance."

Lambo glares at me, "It's better than more stupidity like you. Your kids are going to be dumb as rocks."

I hide a smirk. "They will be since _you're_ going to help take care of them."

I can practically feel the excitement burst from next to me. "Really? I can help take care of them?"

"Tsk, ask me again in ten years."

My distraction works. I know this doesn't solve anything but I'll let Juudaime talk to the brat later. We'll be there for our own kid with whatever he needs.

Somebody comes in as Lambo is describing the type of games he's going to play with my future (probably never going to happen) kids and gives him the shot of Ketamine. He says it will numb Lambo to any pain and should start working within a few minutes. It does. The doctor comes in soon after that; resets the wrists, and applies a splint. It's all over in a matter of minutes.

"How do you feel?" I ask with a frown. He's looking at the splint on his hand almost in awe.

Lambo slowly raises his head to look at me and smiles weirdly. It kind of freaks me out how dazed he seems. They did say this would happen but seeing it is just...wrong.

"I feel everything. And nothing. I _feel_ …" He says with a crooked smile. I hold back a shudder. Yeah, I am not dealing with this.

"I'm going to call Kyoya in here so I can step outside to call Juudaime. Just lie down; I'll be back."

"That's what he said," Lambo bursts out laughing.

"Yeah, whatever. Stay put,"

"What about my baby sister?"

"We'll talk about that later,"

I walk out of the room, down the hall, and into the waiting room. I can hear some people coughing, others sniffing, and I remember why I hate hospitals. It's infested with germs and all types of diseases!

I spot Hibari standing off to the side, far away from the general public. I can see how hard it is for him to be around so many people but he's doing it somehow. "I need to call Juudaime, go stay with the brat."

Hibari looks like he's about to protest but instead, he pulls away from the wall and heads inside. Well, that was easier than I thought it would be. He probably does feel a little guilty for breaking the kid's wrist. As he fucking should.

I dial my favorite number and take a deep breath as I wait for Juudaime to answer. Once he does, I tell him of Lambo's broken wrist and what hospital we're at. He sounds worried, a little angry as well which means he's going to have a few words with Hibari. Ha. Juudaime says he's on his way and will be here shortly.

I hang up and begin to head back when I notice a flurry of movement. The hospital staff looks to be in a panic - they seem to be looking for something; some are actually crying. I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. I hurry to Lambo's room but stop when I see Hibari slam a hand against the nurses' station. This can't be good.

"What the fuck happened?" I was gone for no more than five minutes. How bad could it possibly be?

He whips around to look at me, his eyes full of anger. "He's gone. These imbeciles didn't see him leave the room. He's missing."

Oh, no. It's bad. Juudaime is on his way so he's going to arrive at a hospital on lockdown because we lost the stupid kid. He's going to be upset with us. With me!

"We need to find him!"

Hibari rolls his eyes, that bastard. How dare he roll his eyes at me? "Security has been alerted. They have people stationed at all exits and the useless staff are searching room by room."

"It's not their fault, we shouldn't have left him alone,"

" _You_ shouldn't have left him alone."

Shit, he's right. This is on me. I anxiously run a hand through my hair while trying to think. Where the fuck would a high Lambo go? Wait,

"The maternity ward,"

Hibari raises an eyebrow, "I didn't realize you'd reproduced,"

Was that a joke? Did the psycho seriously think this was a good time to joke around? "You have such shitty timing! Lambo, he was talking about a sibling. I'm sure he went looking for the babies."

Hibari stares at me as if I've gone mad. Which I will if we don't find the stupid cow before Juudaime arrives.

"Are you saying he's gone to kidnap himself a sibling?"

"What? No, you dumbass,"

The Monster of Namimori takes a step towards me, probably ready to kill me but I don't have time for this. I turn to the nervous-looking nurse behind the desk. "Oi, where is your maternity ward?"

"It-it's on the third floor. I'll alert security,"

I immediately speed off to the nearest stairwell. The elevator will take more time and Juudaime should be arriving soon. I don't look back but I know Hibari is following close behind. I push the door open once we hit the third floor and security is there waiting for us.

"We found him, he's just down the hall."

I turn the corner and my heart almost stops at the sight. Lambo is face down on the floor, unmoving. I run to his side, dropping down next to him. I'm worried that something is wrong but then I realize he's staring at a melting ice cube.

"What are you doing?" I asked incredulously. His eyes are big and round, staring at the ice cube in wonder.

"It's fascinating," he whispers.

Hibari walks up to us, glaring down at the kid. "The guard said he was looking at the fresh batch of troublemakers before dropping to the floor. Somebody spilled some water and he got distracted."

"Look, guys, the ice cube is fighting against its natural enemy; heat. I want to help it but we're not supposed to intervene with the circle of life. I'm still rooting for the little guy, though."

I run a hand down my face. I can't deal with this. I turn to Hibari so he can take over but freeze when I see who is standing next to the monster.

"Juudaime!" I quickly stand to explain but he tells me to calm down.

"Security explained what happened when I got here. I'm just glad he's ok."

I move away, Juudaime can take over now that he's here. He sits down next to the brat, a concerned smile on his face. "Hey, Lambo. It's time to go home."

The stupid cow sits up then shows Juudaime his hand. "Tsuna-nii, you missed out on all the fun. I almost had my hand amputated, Stupidera said I can take care of his kids, _and_ I saw nature at work," He points to the now melted ice. "Nature sure is scary, Tsuna-nii."

Hibari and Juudaime look at me, one with disgust and the other in amusement. "Hayato, why didn't you tell me you had kids?"

"I-I don't, Juudaime!"

"She could have done better,"

I glare at HIbari, "You bastard,"

"Stupidera is going to be a great dad,"

I freeze. What? Juudaime smiles at Lambo but looks at me when he speaks, "Yes, he will be a great dad one day."

I can feel my face burn. "Thank you, Juudaime! I won't let you down."

Hibari scoffs and I swear I've had it with him. Everyone thinks he's a quiet devil but that's not true. He just doesn't bother with the general population.

"Tsuna-nii, can we go home? I'm ready to go back into my body."

"Sure, little brother. Let's go home."

Once I finish signing the discharge papers, I follow Juudaime and the brat to the car. Hibari having taken his back alone. As Lambo is buckling up, I can't help but wonder if the brat really thinks I'll make a great dad. I know the Ketamine has a lot to do with what he said but I still feel a bit elated. Maybe I _am_ doing something right.

"Are you constipated, Stupidera? You look like you are."

My eye twitches. "You little shit," Yeah, I'll be a great dad.

* * *

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Thank you for your continued support! I thank you in advance for your reviews as well. Hint, hint. ^_^ Just a little side note: I rewatched the early episodes and realized Hibari actually talks more than I thought. That's something I'll be working on in the near future. Oh, the possibilities.

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	12. L is for Lonely

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

Here is my contribution to the lovely letter L. Thank you for not giving up on me. Especially Namyari, Fi Suki Saki, and ilovecartoonsgirl.

 **WARNINGS** : Mistakes, language, attempted murder. Just kidding about that last one. Lol

Thanks to Grammarly for checking this over but I'm sure there are still plenty of mistakes. As usual, I will go over it later with a pair of fresh eyes. Maybe.

Without further ado, L is for...

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" **I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people who make you feel alone."**

 **-** _ **Robin Williams**_

"Why do you always act like an idiot?"

Lambo froze. He felt as if somebody had punched a hole through his stomach; nausea threatening to make him sick. It was a familiar question, one he'd heard plenty of times from his brothers but this time was different. This time it hurt him enough to make him feel ill. The teen rubs the back of his neck awkwardly as he forces himself to act like he's fine; as if the question didn't bother him at all.

"Sorry, sorry. I wasn't thinking."

"Tch, that's nothing new. I-Pin and Fuuta are the only ones who do any thinking." Gokudera rolls his eyes while picking up the books Lambo had knocked over as he'd rushed past.

Lambo wants to cry but he smiles instead. "Sorry about that, Haya-nii. I'll be more careful from now on."

Gokudera stops from picking up the last book, looking up at his youngest brother with a raised eyebrow instead. Lambo looks the same as he always does but the smoke bomber can tell something is different - he's just not sure what. "What's wrong?" He asks getting straight to the point.

The teen begins to frown before quickly changing it to a smile. There is nothing wrong, not really. In fact, Lambo isn't sure what's bugging him. "Nothing, why?"

"Because you're acting funny. You better not be up to anything stupid,"

Lambo laughs but it's so fake he cringes at the hollow sound. "I'm not up to anything, promise." The younger Vongola hesitates for a second before speaking again. "Haya-nii, I've changed, right? For the better, I mean."

Gokudera frowns, "What the fuck are you talking about? Changed how?"

"Nothing, never mind. Anyway, I gotta go but I'll see you later, Haya-nii." The teen says as he turns towards the door only to stop at his brother's words.

"I won't be here later. I'm on the next flight back to Italy," Gokudera finishes picking up his stack of books and grunts, "There's been an altercation between two famiglias and Juudaime needs me back sooner than expected."

Lambo feels his mouth go dry but doesn't say anything; just nods in response. Gokudera asks again if something's wrong but the teen shakes his head. "Nothing is wrong, Haya-nii. Um, I'll talk to you later then. Have a safe flight!" The teen runs off ignoring the suspicious look on his brother's face.

He reaches the park in a few minutes, immediately looking for his new friends. Having started middle school with new classmates, Lambo had been a nervous wreck about making friends. He hadn't told his family how anxious he'd been about meeting new people but Lambo's sure they knew anyway. Even though he acted confident and cocky most of the time, Lambo was actually really insecure. He's sure his family knows that as well.

After the first day, though, Lambo was relieved to have made friends with a group of boys in his class. Yuuto, Reo, and Touma were a little taller than Lambo as well as more popular; Yuuto and Touma both had blond hair while Reo had hair as dark as Lambo's - none of them had it as curly as Lambo, though. They had immediately taken a liking to Lambo and had invited him to sit with them during lunch.

They would play together a lot and Lambo had so much fun. Sure, they asked him to do a lot for them but he didn't mind. Friends helped each other after all. At least, that's what he kept telling himself. It was fine in the beginning but after a while, Lambo began to feel like an extra - an outsider in his own group. They did have fun together but Lambo was starting to admit it was mostly at his expense.

They were also brutally honest with him.

After becoming the reigning champion at zombie tag, Lambo decided to celebrate with a dance. The group of boys had then asked Lambo why he acted like an idiot all of the time. He hadn't known how to answer that because he hadn't known he acted like one in the first place. He had fun, he was friendly and liked making people laugh but he didn't think he was an idiot for it.

Lambo's family would constantly call him an idiot as well but it never felt like they meant it in a deprecating way. His family loves him and Lambo gives insults back just as much as he gets them. There has never been hate in their barbs, just teasing. When his new friends did it, though, it makes him feel bad. It embarrasses him to be called an idiot by them. So, ever since that first time, Lambo has obeyed and begun acting more mature. He didn't want to lose the only friends he had; he could deal with a little name-calling.

He spots the group of three off to the side playing a game of catch and runs to join them. "Hey, guys! Sorry, I'm late but I couldn't find my shoes."

Yuuto pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose and smirks, "Nothing new there. I'm surprised you remembered we were meeting up at all."

"I wouldn't forget," He tries to hide the hurt in his voice but isn't sure if he succeeded. Lambo has been late to their games a few times so it's not like he's given them a reason to think he's reliable.

"Did you at least bring the drinks, Lambo?" Reo asks as he catches the ball Touma throws his way. There isn't really a leader in their group but it's obvious Reo is the most respected member. Lambo wants to disappoint him the least.

Lambo smiles, "Yup, and they're nice and cool right now." He anxiously pulls out four drinks from his backpack, hoping they're fine for his friends. He hands three of them to the teens with a smile which quickly turns to a frown when Touma extends his hand for the fourth drink.

"Would it be ok if I got a second drink? I've been feeling a little sick and need to stay hydrated."

Lambo looks at the drink in his hand. "I'm sorry, I only bought four."

Touma sighs, "It's ok. I didn't think to ask you to bring a few extras."

"Come on, Touma, you know Lambo isn't the best at thinking ahead. You should have known better." Reo adds with a laugh.

"Don't worry, Lambo. You're our friend even if you're not the sharpest tool in the shed." Yuuto says while wrapping his arm around Lambo's shoulders. "It's Touma's own fault if he passes out from dehydration. We'll need to stop our game but it's no big deal."

Without hesitation, Lambo shakes his head, "No, it's ok. Here, Touma." He says as he offers his drink. "I don't want you to pass out."

Touma accepts it with a grin. "Thank you, Lambo. You're the best, you know that?"

Lambo feels his chest fill with pride. The teens would make him feel bad every now and then but they knew how to cheer him up as well. "Aw, thanks, Touma."

They include him in their game of catch and soon Lambo forgets the awkwardness he arrived with. He tries to keep up with their conversation but they talk about their time without Lambo, he's not sure what to say so he just smiles. The group of friends plays for several minutes, Lambo laughing along when somebody doesn't catch the ball. When Reo misses the ball for the fourth time, Lambo laughs again.

"Reo, you might need some extra practice at catching. You gotta pay attention to the ball," He laughs wiping away an imaginary tear.

Touma and Yuuto laugh as well, especially when Reo's face turns a bright red. "Wow, being told by the simpleton. Is that a new low for Reo?" Asks Yuuto.

"Simpleton?" Lambo isn't sure what that is but it doesn't _sound_ like an insult.

"That means you keep things simple, you get straight to the point."

"Yup, what Touma said. That's what we like about you, Lambo."

"Oh, thanks!" He laughs along with the two, not paying attention to Reo's glare.

The next time Reo catches the ball, he tells Lambo to catch but throws it a lot harder than Lambo had been expecting. It catches the teen off guard, the ball striking him hard. He clutches his left shoulder in pain but forces himself not to cry. _Hold it in, hold it in._

"Lambo, are you ok?" Reo asks as the three boys rush to his side. Lambo really wants to believe they're genuinely worried but they're probably just afraid they'll get in trouble. "I'm sorry, it just slipped from my hand."

"I'm fine," He says through a clenched jaw.

Touma slaps Reo's back, "I told you he was a strong one. Lambo isn't weak at all."

"You're right, Lambo is awesome." Reo picks up the ball and smiles. "How about we get some ice cream? My treat."

For a split second, Lambo forgets his pain at the mention of free ice cream. They've never treated him to anything before, he's usually the one that pays. "Sure, thank you!"

Once at the local ice cream parlor, the boys place their order while Lambo also asks for some ice for his aching shoulder. He places the ice - wrapped in a towel - on his shoulder just as the lady gives them their total. Reo pats his pockets for his wallet, then frowns.

"Drats, I guess I must have left my wallet at home. Can you guys let me borrow some money?" He asks Touma and Yuuto but both shake their heads saying they didn't bring theirs either. Lambo lowers his head in frustration. He should have known this would happen. He wasn't expecting it but it's not surprising either.

"I got it," He hands the cashier the money, trying to hold back from saying something he'll regret. Maybe he's jumping to conclusions and Reo really _did_ forget his wallet.

"Thanks, Lambo. See, I don't know why nobody in school wants to be your friend. You're a great person." Reo states as he takes his and Lambo's ice cream to a table.

"I heard it's because Lambo's embarrassing to be around with."

"I heard that. I also heard that even his family is embarrassed by him and that's why they never visit during school events."

 _That's not true. I know my family is busy so I don't tell them about school events. Otherwise, they would always be there._

"I've heard people say he's too loud and obnoxious. Somebody asked me why we hang around him but I told them Lambo was great to have as a friend."

Lambo wants to cry. He doesn't run around talking with everybody like he used to because he didn't want people thinking bad of him. Touma had told him their classmates didn't like that and thought he was annoying. He was trying to change, he was trying to be mature. He even avoided the kids going up to him for fear of chasing them away.

"Don't worry, Lambo. Even if nobody else wants to be your friend, you'll always have us. We don't care if you act like an idiot most of the time."

Lambo nods his silent thanks as the boys laugh, ignoring the now melting treat in front of him. After some time with them talking, they bring up their next activity.

"But they charge to use the batting cages," Lambo states with a scowl. If they thought Lambo would pay again, they were dead wrong.

Reo nods, "True. Do you think you can lend us the fee? We'll pay next time."

Lambo shakes his head, "I don't have any more money. I used up my allowance on today's drinks and ice cream." Which isn't a lie but he does have money saved for emergencies. Not that he's going to tell them that.

"Oh, that's disappointing. We were looking forward to watching you hit the ball out of the park again."

"I'm not sure I can even hold a bat right now. My shoulder is really hurting."

"Aw, don't be a weenie, Lambo. I didn't even throw it that hard."

"Yeah, Lambo. Why are you trying to ruin a good day, huh?"

He wasn't trying to. Lambo just didn't feel like doing anything else. He was not only in pain, but he was also feeling pretty miserable; sad. "You guys go, I'm going to go home and take something for the pain."

"Don't be like that, Lambo, we want to hang out with you some more," Touma says as he wraps an arm around Lambo's shoulder, ignoring the wince the smaller teen makes when his shoulder is squeezed.

"Don't pressure him, guys. If he doesn't want to spend time with us, we can't force him. Don't worry, it's ok, Lambo."

That's not it at all but at this point, Lambo doesn't care what they think. He can't spend one more minute with them.

"Aright, I guess we'll see you at school on Monday," Reo adds when Lambo doesn't say anything.

They separate and Lambo really wants to cry. His friends always make him feel awful even though they probably don't do it on purpose. He doesn't want to lose the only friends he has but he hates feeling so drained after meeting up with them. It's always the same thing and he's tired of it. He tries so hard not to act like himself but it doesn't seem to be enough; he even acts mature in front of his family now. The last thing he wants is for them to feel embarrassed to have him as a brother and treat him as an inconvenience just like everyone else.

Once he makes it home, he sits outside the door; tossing his backpack to the side, not wanting to go in just yet. His shoulder feels swollen, the pain only having increased since he was struck by the baseball. Lambo doesn't want to believe Reo hit him on purpose but he remembers the grin on Reo's face when he threw the ball - it was scary. No, maybe it was just excitement during the game?

Lambo sighs, he really is an idiot if he believes that. He hears his phone ring with a notification and pulls the device from his pocket. He checks his social media which is where the alert is coming from; this time he cries. His friends must have found some money because they made it to the batting cages and tagged him in a picture. The three have baseball bats in their hands and are smiling at the camera which Reo seems to be holding. The caption reads, " _Wish you were here."_

Lambo leans forward, crying into his hands. He really has been an idiot. They didn't care about him, they didn't think he was a friend - they were clearly just using him. He was so desperate to avoid being lonely, he denied the obvious red flags. In the end, though, it was worse. He had a group of friends but he felt lonelier than he ever had before. It hurt so much to finally admit it. He didn't have friends at all.

"Looks like you're back to normal,"

Lambo flinches at the voice, quickly wiping his eyes. Not to hide the fact he was crying but more like wanting to be able to see any attacks coming his way. "What do you mean?" Lambo won't bother asking what his brother is doing here.

Hibari stares at him from the entrance, arms crossed over his neatly pressed suit. "You haven't been as annoying which turned troublesome for me."

Lambo blinks, "Huh?"

"Why?"

"Why _what_ , Psycho-nii?" Lambo asks with irritation seeping into his tone. He was in pain, frustrated, and feeling completely used; he wasn't in the mood for games. If Hibari didn't get to the point soon, Lambo would...well, do nothing actually.

Hibari uncrosses his arms, walking to stand in front of Lambo with narrow eyes. "Why have you been making the other herbivores worry with your annoying non-annoying behavior? They have been bothering me for answers. If you don't tell me what has been going on, I will bite you to death right now." He growls.

 _Translation: I may be a little concerned myself, tell me what's wrong._

It takes him a minute to understand and when he does, Lambo laughs. He should have known they'd realize something was up but Hibari was the last one he thought would bring it up. He sees the tonfa about to come down on his left shoulder and he panics. "Not my shoulder, not my shoulder!" He shouts while scooting as far back as he can; keeping his left shoulder hidden from view.

The tonfa stops a centimeter above his injured shoulder, Hibari's eyes even deadlier than before as he glares at Lambo. "You have two minutes to explain everything. Go,"

Lambo sighs but knows it's futile to deny anything is wrong. He tells Hibari everything that's happened since his first day of school two months ago. He tells him how his 'friends' have made him feel; how they used him, how he doesn't want to be an embarrassment to anyone, and how much he's hurting right now.

"I didn't think it was possible to feel alone while surrounded by people, you know? I think that hurts more than if I had been by myself."

Lambo expects a tonfa to the head for showing weakness so he's a little surprised when it doesn't come. Instead, Hibari chuckles. Lambo is pretty sure hell has frozen over. He wants to ask where the real Psycho-nii is but he values his life enough not to.

"I never thought you'd be desperate for friends. I've seen the small herbivores gather around you in school. You truly are an idiot, little bother."

Instead of asking how he knows what happens in school, Lambo just smiles. "Thanks, Psycho-nii." Being called an idiot by his brother makes him feel loved again. Is that even normal?

"Take off your shirt."

What?

"...what?"

Hibari guides him inside where the teen carefully pulls off his shirt so his shoulder can be inspected. The Cloud Guardian, no, his _brother_ tells him there doesn't seem to be any serious damage and to apply some ice for the swelling. Hibari then grabs a pain killer from their medicine cabinet before handing it to Lambo with a glass of water. He warns the teen not take more until Mama returns from work before saying he's leaving.

"I'm glad you stopped by, Psycho-nii."

"Hm, the puppy called to make sure I stopped by. I was planning on doing so but he insisted on acting like a worried fool. He'll pay for thinking he can order me around."

Ah, so Gokudera had known something was wrong this morning. Lambo will have to thank him later for his concern and also warn him about Hibari's threat.

"Thanks again. I feel better than I have this past couple of months."

"Don't let it happen again, little bother. You know better than to let trash rub off on you. If I learn you're hanging around them once more, I will personally beat your pathetic life to a pulp. Do you understand?"

 _Translation: If you let anyone treat you like trash again, I **will** kill you._

Lambo gulps, "G-got it. It won't happen again." And he knows it won't. He can make new friends, good friends this time.

Hibari walks towards the door just as Lambo remembers something from earlier. "Oh, Psycho-nii, can I ask you one more thing?" The Cloud Guardian turns but doesn't answer. Lambo takes that as his cue to ask. "What's a simpleton?"

A half-hour later, Lambo is watching a cartoon when his phone rings again. He checks the notifications and it's another message from his frie-eh, former friends. He thinks about ignoring it but clicks on it with a sigh. As soon as Lambo sees the attached picture, he starts laughing so hard that tears begin to stream down his face.

It's a picture of the three boys all beaten up. Touma is hugging Yuuto, both covered in bruises as they cry into each other. Reo is knocked out cold in front of them, a black eye visibly forming. The caption on this one reads, " _You didn't miss much. Signed, The Simpletons"_

Lambo knows he didn't and _won't_ miss anything from them from now on. He's also sure Hibari would make a fantastic photographer but he'll keep that comment to himself.

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Ta-da! I hope you enjoyed this little piece. Namyari, Fi Suki Saki, and ilovecartoonsgirl, this chapter is for you! Your reviews for the last chapter were the only thing that kept me going. Thank you so much!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


	13. M is for Menstrual Cycle

Welcome to Lambo's Corner!

A mini-chapter for the magnificent m. I need to stop that…

Warnings: Mistakes, language, blood.

Thanks, Grammarly for helping out as you always do.

Without further ado, M is for…

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The sun is beating down on the town of Namimori with a vengeance. The last few days have been warm but it seems the sun is finished playing nice and giving everyone a preview of hell with flames almost visible; Satan himself spitting fire at Namimori.

Lambo is sure he's starting to hallucinate from the heat.

"This is child abuse, I tell you. I could be at home, relaxing in my room with the air conditioner at full blast but no, Stupidera thought it would be funny to send us out in this godforsaken hell and for what? Gum! I'm not the one trying to quit smoking, why do I need to go? Why couldn't his lazy ass get it himself?"

The nine-year-old looks at his best friend when she doesn't reply and frowns. I-Pin would normally be nodding or shaking her head if she didn't agree but right now she looks a bit pale and sick. In fact, now that he thinks about it, she hasn't looked well all day.

Just this morning, he had gone to her room for some advice on a prank he was planning for Gokudera; which was a regular occurrence. He hadn't even gone inside the room, as soon as she saw him she told him to get out before slamming the door on his face. He would have asked what was wrong but he was much too afraid of her Gyoza-Kempo.

"Are you ok?" He asked a bit unsure if he should say anything. I-Pin was not one who liked to appear weak so she'd deny anything that might look like weakness.

I-Pin nods, "I am fine," She responds even as she bends over a little. "Haya-nii probably wanted us out of the house after the mess you made."

With a snort, Lambo crosses his arms over his chest. "It's his fault for not wanting to play with me. I even said please this time."

"That is not an excuse to act like a child, Lambo. There was no need to throw a tantrum as you did." I-Pin snarls; a warning for Lambo to back away. He does.

"I am a child, thank you very much. Besides, it wasn't a tantrum. All I wanted was for him to play with me. That wasn't too much to ask for." Unfortunately, his mouth keeps moving.

Lambo raises his arms in obvious surrender when I-Pin slowly turns to face him. Her face is red as she takes a deep breath, her eyes narrowed in anger.

She undeniably wants to say something but she's interrupted by two approaching teens. They look about middle school age, both oozing with confidence. They're in shorts and jerseys, looking as if they've been practicing some sport or something and clearly not paying attention to where they're going.

They're laughing at something they're watching on a phone, not watching where they're going until one of them bumps into I-Pin. They immediately begin to apologize but once they see they bumped into someone younger, they stop.

"Oi, you kids should watch where you're going." The one with darker hair says, giving them a smirk.

"Especially when you're that short. How was Isaki supposed to see you?" The other adds with a laugh.

Lambo clicks his tongue in irritation, "You bumped into us, jerks. You should apologize before I kick your ass."

The teens laugh, Isaki ruffling Lambo's hair much to the boy's annoyance. He shoves the hand away with a glare.

"You will be bitten to death,"

Lambo stiffens, fearing the worse at the familiar phrase before tilting his head in confusion. The words were the same he's heard before but the voice, that wasn't Hibari's voice. He turns to his side where I-Pin is standing in her well-known fighting pose; ready to strike.

"Oh, yeah? I'd like to see you try, munchkin."

Lambo gulps, that was the wrong thing to say to I-Pin. The boy can only watch in fascination, (and slight terror) as I-Pin takes down both teens, her short pigtails swaying in perfect unison as she moves from one teen to the other.

Before Lambo can offer his assistance, the brutal beating is over. I-Pin is standing over the unconscious teens, her chest heaving and fists clenched. Lambo will forever deny being afraid at that moment.

She quickly turns to face Lambo, who immediately stands straighter. "Are you ok, Lambo?"

Lambo only manages to nod, his words apparently too scared to come out. That is until he notices something running down I-Pin's leg.

"I-Pin, you're bleeding,"

The girl feels around her stomach then looks at her arms but doesn't see any blood. "Where?"

He points to her legs where she can see the red liquid still running down. "When did they get you? I didn't see them touch you at all." Lambo rushes to her side, not sure what to do.

"My stomach hurts," She whimpers. Then, to Lambo's horror, she begins to cry. Not the soft crying she's done before but she was pulling a Lambo kind of cry. She falls to her knees, cradling her stomach as she bawls her eyes out. Lambo panics.

"What's wrong? Oh, my god, are you dying?"

"I want to go home!"

That's when Lambo notices the dark stain on her shorts. It's not a little bleeding, her shorts are bloodied. He feels his worry turn to anger. The guys had obviously hurt I-Pin when he wasn't watching. They hurt her.

He turns to the now stirring teens and growls. He goes and grabs Isaki by the collar of his jersey, pulling the teen to face Lambo. "What did you do to I-Pin?"

The teen blinks before looking to the side where I-Pin is still leaning away, crying in pain. His eyes open wide, "I-I didn't do anything! We didn't get a chance to do anything; she's a monster!"

Lambo pulls his hand back before landing a punch even Gokudera would be proud of on the teen's face. The cracking of his nose sends a wave of satisfaction over Lambo. Isaki falls back, howling in pain as he holds his hands over his bleeding nose.

"You batard!"

Lambo doesn't stop. He punches the teen again, this time he's sure some teeth are rattled. He ignores the agonizing pain building on his bruised knuckles, he needs to focus on taking these jerks down.

The other teen stands up and tries to strike the smaller boy but Lambo's training kicks in. He dodges the incoming punch and returns a tight fist into the teen's stomach, sending him back with a cry.

"If she dies, you're going to wish you could as well," Lambo threatens. "I will make you wish for death." Those action movies really come in handy, he thinks as the teens run away with their tail between their legs. "Cowards!"

He quickly makes his way to I-Pin who is still crying. "I-Pin, you're going to be ok. Please, don't die. I need my best friend."

"It hurts so much," She continues to cry and Lambo knows he needs help as quickly as possible. He pulls out his phone from his pocket with a hiss, only just realizing his knuckles have split from the force of his punches. I-Pin isn't the only one bleeding now; he hopes he didn't break anything.

"You're going to be ok, I-Pin. I'm calling Tsuna-nii now, you're going to be ok." As hard as he tried being strong for her, he can't hold it in anymore. He begins to cry as well. His best friend in the entire world is dying in front of him and there's nothing he can do to save her.

" _Lambo, I was just about to call you. Are you guys almost home?"_

"Tsuna-nii, I-Pin's dying!" He wails into his phone, tears streaming down his face. He feels useless, absolutely useless. I-Pin fought those bastards and he didn't do anything to help. She got hurt because of him.

" _Lambo, calm down!"_

He tries to calm himself, he can't even hear what Tsuna is saying over his crying. "We're two blocks down from home, near Misa-san's house. Please hurry, I-Pin's bleeding out." He cries again.

He can barely make out Tsuna tell him he's on the way before hanging up. Lambo tells I-Pin their brother will here soon which somehow makes things a little better. Tsuna always makes things better.

"I do not want to die," I-Pin sobs as she wraps her arms around Lambo, crying on his shoulder.

Lambo's lip trembles, "You're not going to die, I-Pin,"

No more than five minutes later, they hear running footsteps and they know it's their brothers.

"I-Pin, Lambo!"

"Tsuna-nii, she's dying!" Lambo howls as he looks up to his brothers. Tsuna gently pulls Lambo away from I-Pin so Ryohei can check her over, the Sun Guardian soothingly caressing her head as he asks what hurts.

"That's a lot of blood," Lambo hears Yamamoto whisper to Gokudera. They're looking at the small puddle of blood and Lambo scoffs through his tears.

"That's not I-Pin's, that belongs to the bastard who hurt her."

They both stare at Lambo, a look of suspicion on their face. " _You_ caused this?" Gokudera asks and this time Lambo is sure they don't believe him.

"Of course, I did. I broke his nose and hopefully a tooth, too. He deserved worse for what he did to I-Pin."

Yamamoto ruffles his hair with a proud smile on his face, "Good job, Lambo."

Gokudera gives him a rare look of approval, "It's about time you fought back."

Yamamoto goes for a high-five which is when they notice his bleeding knuckles. "Lambo, you're bleeding."

The boy looks at his hand, all of a sudden remembering he's in incredible pain. He begins to cry. "It hurts!"

Yamamoto carefully inspects his hand while Lambo complains about the pain. "This looks broken,"

"That either must have been one hell of a punch, or the piece of shit had a hard head."

"We'll need to take you to the hospital for an x-ray. The good news is Ryohei will probably try to recruit you for his boxing group, now."

Speaking of the boxer, they turn to Ryohei when the Sun Guardian chuckles. He pulls I-Pin into a hug and gives them a thumbs up. "She's fine, she's not even hurt."

Lambo blinks. "Are you blind? She's obviously dying from blood loss, what is wrong with you?"

Tsuna pats I-Pin's shoulder before standing up to join Lambo. "She's fine, Lambo. I'm sure this must have been terrifying but I promise she's ok."

"How can she be fine, Tsuna-nii? She's bleeding, crying, and is in pain. That does not mean she's ok." The young boy exclaims waving his arms around before crying out from the throbbing on his hand.

"What happened to your hand? Why didn't you tell us you were hurt?"

Yamamoto switches places with Ryohei at the boxer's request, walking to his whimpering brother.

"Here, give me your hand," The Sun Guardian takes Lambo's hand then begins to shower it in his flames. Lambo immediately feels the warmth soothe his aching hand as the healing begins. "I would have loved to see the damage this caused. You're EXTREMELY strong, Lambo."

"Broken nose, busted mouth but Ryo-nii, this is _nothing_. Why isn't anybody worried about I-Pin?"

Tsuna looks uncomfortable for a second, and Lambo wonders if he's missing something.

"We need to have a talk. I didn't think we would need to have it so soon but it can't be helped."

"Is it bad?"

Tsuna shakes his head, giving Lambo a small smile. "Nothing bad. It's just her menstrual cycle."

"What the heck is a menstrual cycle?" Is that some kind of bicycle injury?

"It's completely normal so don't worry, ok? We'll talk about it at home."

"If it's nothing bad why does Stupidera look like he's going to be sick?"

They turn around to where Gokudera has gone pale, then a bright red when he realizes the group is staring. "What? I'm a guy, this isn't in the job description."

"Haha, somebody hasn't matured enough to have a girlfriend." Yamamoto teases while holding a calmed I-Pin. She still looks to be in pain but has relaxed after learning she's not dying.

"You bastard, I'll kill you!"

"Not while he's carrying I-Pin, Hayato. Come on, let's go home."

"Maybe he's got the same thing as I-Pin," Lambo supplies helpfully, confused when everyone starts laughing with the exception of Gokudera. The Storm Guardian surprisingly doesn't say anything.

Ryohei tells Lambo they'll finish once at the house and they all make their way home. Gokudera with a face very similar to a tomato, and Tsuna looking like he's getting ready to give Reborn some bad news. Lambo has never felt so out of the loop in his life but as long as I-Pin is fine, that's all that matters. Thankfully, now they know what's wrong so it won't happen ever again.

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I watched that show's video clip where some boys freak out over their friend getting her period and this came to mind. I wasn't going for funny, more like the scene from Carrie but this ended up happening. I know, it's a mess. Lol, my apologies. I remember when my sister told my nephew about the menstrual cycle, he literally asked if that was a bicycle injury. Kids...

Thank you Fi Suku Saki, ilovecartoonsgirl, and FairyQueen72 for your reviews. As always, they lift my spirits. Namyari, thank you for your kind words as well! As long as I have you guys, I am good. You are all appreciated!

See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!


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